God's Sharp Sword

Take your Bibles, if you would, please, and turn to Hebrews chapter 4. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 11 to the end of the chapter is our text for today. And I'd like to preach to you a message entitled, "God's Sharp Sword." God's sharp sword is powerful and effective. It's sharper than any two-edged sword. You know, the Japanese katana sword is widely known as the sharpest sword in the world, and its molecular edge can cut through anything. And that is dull in comparison to God's Word. God's Word is the sharpest, piercing-est thing ever. And so I want to preach to you today a message entitled, "God's Sharp Sword." Let's read together in Hebrews chapter 4, verses 11, all the way to the end.

Verse 11, "Therefore, let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall through, following the same example of disobedience. For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and the intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are laid open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." The end of chapter 4. So your Bible doesn't say, but I would theologically say, "I believe it should be." So we're going to pause right there, and that's going to be the text for today. The change of subject goes for the priesthood of the believer, or the priesthood of Christ next week, and we'll start there. But today is going to be focused upon the Word of God. And so I want to, first of all, note the imagery that is in this text. The imagery is rich. First of all, it brings your mind to think about the scroll, the scriptures, and then it moves it to the imagery of the sword, and then to the body. Let's look again for the Word of God. Okay, that's verse 12. The Word of God. The hearers here in the text would not have been thinking of, like, your binded Bible, the full canon. And they would have been thinking of scrolls. They would have been thinking of, perhaps, the Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. They would have been thinking of the Psalms. They would have been thinking of what the prophets had to say. And perhaps even what the Gospel writers had to say, but it certainly would not have been like what you have in your hand. And so in your mind, you can think about the scriptures, the scrolls. This is what the Word of God would have been heard for them.

For the Word of God is living. So now you think of the scrolls as something that are alive. But not only alive, they're sharper than any two-edged sword. So it's like a sword piercing as far as the division of the soul and spirit. Okay, so now the writer is bringing us to the imagery of the body. So this is rich with imagery and how God's Word is alive, and it moves like a sword into your body. And so the Word, then, the Logos, can also be understood as the Son. And so the Word of God is known in John chapter 1, verses 1 through 3, as Jesus Christ, the Word of God, is clarified in verse 14 in the Gospel writer of John. And so the Word here can be Christ, the living Word of God. But not only that, it's alive. And so alive being living and active. You know, the Apostle Paul attested to this active agent of the Word of God in 1 Corinthians chapter 16 and verse 9, when he testified that a wide door of effective service has been open to me. And so that was a ministry of the Word of God for Paul to be able to preach and teach and such. And so this was an effective, active work of the Word.

And then not only does the Bible attest to the Word of God being living and active, but it is also piercing. And this word piercing means that it's going to penetrate all the way in and through. But not only is it living and active and piercing, it also judges the thoughts and the hearts of the minds of men. In Psalm 75, verse 7, it says that God is the Judge, and He can put one down and exalt another. And so He is the ultimate Judge. But I would ask you, have you ever had somebody say to you, "Don't judge me? Don't judge me." And that perhaps is a defensive measure to protect their sin. Don't judge me. Well, it's commonly known that that verse in Matthew 7, verse 1 has been taken out of context. And as you look at the context of Matthew 7, verse 1, you actually see that we are to judge. And it's further clarified in John 7, verse 24, when the Bible says, "Judge with righteous judgment." And so Jesus was commanding the people to judge with a righteous judgment. And that is simply to say is to use God's Word to judge things rightly, to determine what is right and wrong.

And so we need to make sure that we are able to follow what Jesus commanded and to use His Word to judge things rightly rather than to be pigeonholed into a corner and to not utilize our sharp sword. Sharp in the text is best viewed as judging the inner man, judging the discerning hearts of the inner man. It can be understood as conviction, conviction that is designed to bring you to repentance. And so this sharpness of the sword is somewhat a test, is to death. But that's not what the text is saying. It's not as to kill someone. It is to condemn someone so that they can see that they are dead outside of Christ so that they can be made alive. And so this sharpness of the sword is designed to pierce the heart under conviction.

For believers, this is truly comforting because you know that the Word of God is able to set you straight and to guide you in life. You need the Word of God's ability to cut to the heart of the matter. You read God's Word to be a mirror in your life. You read God's Word to see if you are in alignment with the Holy Spirit's leading in your life. If you're at peace while you're reading God's Word, then continue in the faith, continue in the Word. Believers love that, but non-believers detest that because it reveals their sin and sinners love their sin. Lost people love their sin. They protect their sin. They don't want to talk about their sin. They want to celebrate their sin. And so the Word of God pierces the heart.

A lot of times we experience rejection in life just simply because we're living out loud. We're lights for Christ. If we're talking about the Word of God, if we're living out loud, other people will have a hatred for that because it exposes their sin. You're like a flashlight on the dark parts of their life. And the Word of God is dynamic enough to do that, the spoken Word. As you reveal what is right and wrong through saying what is right and wrong, it reveals things. It's dynamic. It's powerful. God's Word cannot be evaded. It is going to pierce to the heart of the matter. God's Word is so specific and so, I would say, kind to a sinner to be able to show them the error of their way. And it's also kind to us to be able to show us the error of our way that it can cut to the heart of the matter and get to the deepest parts of who you are and to be able to help you discern what is right and wrong.

And so Jesus Himself being our peace is one way that the Holy Spirit works in your life through the Word of God to reveal whether or not you're on the right track or doing the right things. Peace has been removed from you. Christ being your peace. He can remove the peace inside of your heart. You could be troubled in your spirit in the Word of God as you're reading and studying it. It can trouble you or it can confirm you. It can be confirming as you are studying the Word of God.

Turn to Isaiah chapter 55 and I'd like to explore just a little bit of this discernment in God's Word because it doesn't return void. It says in Isaiah 55, verses 10 and 11 that my Word will not return to me empty. But this entire chapter is really worth diving into because of the imagery. And we have a family discipleship service here so we have a lot of children in our congregation. So thrilled about that. And if you like to draw, you can draw clouds and rain and you can draw swords in this message because the imagery is rich, especially in Isaiah chapter 55.

First of all, we're going to get through some evangelism before we get down to that key verse. But in Isaiah 55 is the free offer of salvation up and coming. "Oh, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters and you who have no money, come. Buy and eat, come. Buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me and eat what is good and delight yourself in abundance and climb your ear and come to me. Listen that you may live." This word listen in Hebrew definitely means to trust and obey. That's what they're saying right here. And so this free invitation to come to Christ, to come to Jesus, is for those who would repent of their sin and place their faith and trust in the substitutionary death of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Continuing on in verse 3, it says, "And I will make an everlasting covenant with you." I can't wait to get a little bit farther in the book of Hebrews as we start to talk about the new covenant that's coming up. "According to the faithful mercies shown to David, behold, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and a commander for the peoples. Behold, you will call a nation you do not know and a nation who knows you not will run to you." This is the calling of the lost and that the lost will come. "And then as well, because of the Lord your God, even the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you." So the lost will come to salvation as to God be the glory.

In verse 6, it says, "Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near." You see the invitation being to those who were lost and calling them to come to Christ. In verse 7, "Let the wicked forsake his way and let the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return back to the Lord." This is a call, an invitation to repent. "And then what happens? And He will have compassion upon him." Him or He in this text in my Bible, in the New American Standard, is capitalized because the pronouns referring to God or Christ or the Holy Spirit are capitalized. And so He in this text is capitalized. God will have compassion on lost people who repent and come to Christ. And then as well in this verse, "And to our God, for He will abundantly pardon." This word pardon means forgive. And so this abundance of pardoning means that all of your sin, past, present, and future, are forgiven, paid for, done.

How does this happen? Well, verse 8 says, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts nor your ways, my ways," declares the Lord. Verse 9, "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." And here's some imagery, if you like to circle words in your Bible, circle the word rain in verse 10. "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there without watering the earth." Now, get this, it's going to be a comparison in the text between rain and its effectiveness. And coming up here in a moment, the Word and its effectiveness, okay? "And do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout." Follow the imagery, this is wonderful. Just as rain causes things to bear, this word bear means to be born or to come up. You see this salvific invitation here. Through the imagery of how water is effective to make things sprout and come up, okay? Not only bearing means to be born, but also to sprout means to be caused to grow, to be caused to grow. And so rain causes things not only to be born and to sprout, but also to grow.

"And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so will," here's the comparison, "so will my Word." Now, if you like to circle words in your Bible, circle the word Word, and you may even draw a connection between the rain and the Word because that is the comparison in the text. "So will my Word, which goes forth from my mouth, it will not return to me empty without accomplishing what I desire and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it." This is amazing to see the effectiveness of the Word of God. And so the comparison between rain and the Word is what the prophet Isaiah is doing right here. He is helping us to understand that the preaching of the Word, the reading of the Word, the proclamation of the Word will not return void.

And so why not utilize the Word as much as you possibly can? Why not preach the Word? Proclaim the Word. Share the Word. It's not going to return void. It will accomplish all that which God has designed for it to do. Those who will be saved will be saved. You don't have to worry about that. You just preach the Word. Share the Gospel and make disciples be happy in Christ. Don't worry about the things that you have no control over. Just do what you can and be one who is constantly in the Word and spreading the Word like seed, spreading the Word like those who are watering gardens. Continue to fertilize and water and nurture and pull weeds, right? Pull weeds. Pull out things that are not sound doctrine. Remove things that are not the Word of God. Be a part of this whole process. The Word of God will not return empty.

In Isaiah chapter 55, now in verse 12, what happens when you do these things? What's the result of the Word of God? We're talking about the Word of God today from Hebrews chapter 4 verse 12. And here you know that the preacher of the book of Hebrews knew the book of Isaiah really well. And so now you're thinking, "Okay, I'm tracking with this idea of the Word of God here." Not only will it return, not return empty, but in verse 12 it says, "For you," okay, "for those who have responded by faith and believed in the resurrection and have been saved, for you will go out with joy." Now, the first result of the Word of God is that it produces joy. And be led forth with peace. Another result of the Word working in your life is not only joy but also peace. And here's some more imagery. "The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy." And so joy and peace produce shouts of joy and praise and worship before you. "And all the trees of the field will clap their hands." If you could imagine all of the forest upon the face of the earth and all of the trees beating their branches together and clapping and praising God, that's going to be to the extent for which you love and shout and praise and visualize everything bringing glory to God.

And as the trees clap their hands, and then in verse 13 it gets even more specific. "Instead of the thorn bush, the cypress will come up, and in context they would understand the thorn to be from the curse." The curse. "And then the curse will be removed instead, and the cypress tree will come up. In context, the hearers here would have understood the cypress tree to be a noble tree, a stately tree, a desired tree, a tree that could be utilized even in God's Holy Temple, usable, wonderful." And so God, in His Word working in you, will remove the curse and replace you with stateliness, with usability, with wonderful things. The Word of God works in our lives in these meaningful ways.

And again, further illustration comes, and instead of the nettle, the myrtle, and so the nettle was a plant that was out in the wilderness, out in the desert, okay? That's not desired. Instead of a wilderness tree-like experience, you're going to have a myrtle tree-like experience. And the myrtle was highly significant in Hebrew culture, okay? It had a fragrance that was beautiful, and it had an appeal that was beautiful. Its beauty represented peace, blessing, and joy, essentially replacing the curse with God's favor. The work of God's Word in our hearts and lives removes the curse and replaces it with God's favor, little by little, and it will be a memorial to the Lord for an everlasting sign, which will not be cut off.

This is a fantastic chapter, and the reason why we came here is because of the fact that the Word of God will not return to you empty, but not only will it not return to you empty in preaching and teaching and proclaiming, but also the results of it in your own life have rich rewards. And so I praise God for the rich rewards of those who study God's Word. We have a culture of Bible study here at Beulah Baptist Church. We really equip people to be able to study God's Word for themselves. I'm very proud of our women's Bible study. The mornings are now dividing up into more Bible study groups. And so if you're not in a Bible study at 9:30, come. We have men's Bible study groups. We have women's Bible study groups. We study the Bible and make disciples. It's a culture here that we've developed, and we do the work of digging into God's Word, and we're diligent in that. And it is wonderful to see the results, not only in your lives, but it's also trickling into our children's lives. And the joy, the peace and the overflow is truly characterizing our people's lives. It's wonderful to see the work of the Word in our hearts and minds.

Back to Hebrews, chapter four, with me, if you would. And so you see the preacher's imagery here. The preacher to the Hebrews, which eventually was written as the book of Hebrews, uses the imagery of the sword and the body. And the sword would have been a striking point of imagery for the hearers here. You say, why would it have been striking? Well, the swords that were commonly known then would have been swords made by the Amalekites. And that was something that would have been a bit striking to them because the Amalekites and the Canaanites, they were enemies of God. And there was a bit of trepidation when it comes to thinking about their enemies having swords, and they were really good at making swords. That may most likely be in view here as to the reason why the preacher of Hebrews brings up the imagery of a sword. Okay? There's an element of fear that comes when you think of having a sword from the Amalekites pointed at you. And instead, the imagery then would be God having a sword, utilizing it for good in our lives.

So the essence of the text is inner potency. Okay? The ability for God's Word to penetrate to the deep parts of your heart. That's the author's focus. But it's not just for Israel in the text, not just for the Jews, it's not just for the Hebrews. And we know that this was written to a mixed audience, but mostly to the Hebrews, they would have to have had a really good grip on the Old Testament to understand this deep theological letter, but also to everyone.

Verse 13 clarifies that. "Look with me in Hebrews 4:13, and there is no creature hidden from His sight." And so the active Word of God is not only for the audience here in Hebrews, but it is for everyone who has ever existed, every creature, nothing, not no one. "Nothing is hidden from God's sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." And so our inner attitudes, our inner thoughts, nothing is outside of God's understanding.

If you're taking notes, point number one is that God's sharp sword deals with the heart. Deals with the heart. God's sharp sword is something that deals with all of the matters of the heart. And as we have just discussed that, and now moving on to point number two, God's sharp sword develops the obedient heart. So not only does it deal with the heart, but it also develops the obedient heart.

And we just talked, we spoke about some of the results of an obedient heart, a receptive heart out of Isaiah chapter 55, "It's joy and peace and blessings." And now having entered into what we've been talking about, God's rest, this subject of the Word of God being a sword comes up. Let's follow the train of thought. Let's go back to verse 11. "Therefore, let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall through following the same example of disobedience." And so now for those who have entered into salvation by the Lord Jesus Christ, are to continue in the Word of God. And this is relevant for us because there are degrees of obedience that we enjoy and experience more and more.

As we have studied the theological concept of the word "rest," it goes all the way through the Bible. And as you learn how to continue to be at rest, at peace in Christ, and to work out your own salvation, this is a matter of submitting to the authority of God's Word and resting in Him and enjoying His sovereignty. And this is a matter of spiritual growth. The more that you yield, the more you will enjoy. The more that you learn of Christ, the more that you will enjoy. It's a matter of degrees. And so you really should be more knowledgeable in the Word of God today than you were last year, and a year before, and a year before, and a year before.

Which is to say, if you continue in the Word, like John 8:31 says, you will be more knowledgeable of Christ and His Word next year, and the following year, and the following year, especially doing Bible study in groups, especially doing Bible study on Wednesday nights, and especially going through the book of Hebrews. What an immense book, especially, especially, especially. We capitalize upon the Word of God because the Word of God does so much work. And if you will remain faithful to the Word of God, I can promise you that God's will, will gradually be worked out in your life.

And you know that God's will is not a destination. You're not trying to get somewhere. God's will is being in God's will. It's a journey. It's a walk. It's a relationship with Christ. You are studying the Bible and making disciples and being obedient. It's a matter of gradually learning more of Christ and enjoying more of who He is.

How many of you are married? You know that's true. You learn more, and more, and more of your spouse as time goes by. How many of you have children? How many of you have friends and neighbors? The same thing. You learn more, and more, and more of others. It's the same is true of the vastness of Christ.

The opposite is true as well because some of them fell short in this verse. It's unfortunate, but Israel is an example to us not to fall, not to fall short, not to harden your hearts. If you do not yield to the convicting, piercing, judging Word of God upon your heart, if you don't yield, you're going to have to put your shield up. You're going to have to put a sinful shield up, not the shield like I'm saying. That's referenced in the Ephesians chapter 6. But you're going to have to put your guard against God because His Word is piercing. His Word is convicting. His Word is sharp. You are not going to be able to live underneath the conviction. You're going to have to deflect God, which is hardening your hearts.

There's a warning that the preacher of Hebrews has already said three times not to harden your hearts. Chapter 3 verse 8, chapter 3 verse 15, chapter 4 verse 7, "Do not harden your hearts." The Israelites are examples of ones whom fell away and hardened their hearts against the Lord even though He was so kind and so patient and so enduring of their rebellion. And so not only does the Word work in our hearts in these ways, but it also pierces the heart in a way that penetrates.

And that is an example that we see through more imagery in Luke chapter 8 by way of salvation's seed, the Word of God, as it is either rejected or accepted. Four different soils, only one is good, only one is receptive. And so do not harden your heart because the soil is representative of the heart's condition in Luke chapter 8. And that seed being the Word of God, do not harden your heart against God's Word. Be receptive, be moldable, be embracing God's Word. The more that you can consume God's Word, the better, and better, and better. The more you listen to it by way of podcasts, the more that you study it, the more you listen to preaching, the more that you're in church, the more, the more, the more, the better, the better, the better.

And so develop an obedient heart because God helps those who are humble and trepidatious before His Word. Turn to Isaiah chapter 66 with me, and I want you to see this. This is so important in that, who does God look to? Who does God help? Who does God place His blessings upon? Well, there are some conditions here in Isaiah 66 and verse 2. The latter half of the verse starts with this, "But to this one I will look." Okay? Isaiah 66, verse 2, last half of the verse. "But to this one," this person, okay? Who is the one whom God will look to? "But to this one I," being God, "will look." And this word "look" is wonderful. It means that God is going to give you regard. It means that God is going to pay attention to you. Out of all of the millions of peoples in the world, you think, "Who is God going to pay special and close attention to? Who is He going to consider? Who is He going to look to? But to this one I will look."

To him who is, the first point in this text is humble. Humble. The humble one. God will look to. And to be humble means to actually be poor and weak and needy, even viewing yourself as one who is lowly and wretched. If you have a proper Biblical estimation of the self, in that you without Christ are poor and needy and wretched and in need of help. "Blessed are the poor in spirit," Jesus said. If you view yourself that you essentially could mess up a one-car funeral, you essentially can't even put a sentence together without God's help. You essentially cannot accomplish anything apart from Christ. Then you're humble before God. God I truly know that I need You. Without Your empowerment, without Your help, without Your energy, without Your direction, without You, I just can't. I don't even want to take one step, one breath, one day without You, Jesus. That's the humble heart before God. It's the opposite of pride. I can do it myself. I don't need God or His guidance. I've been looked in His Word. I don't care about His Word. I walk right past His Word and go out the door and do it my way.

The opposite of being humble is doing it your way, to have a high estimation of oneself. But who will God look to and consider and listen to and bless to Him who is humble? And the next point in the text is contrite, contrite, which is rather strange as you study it out because it means to be smitten of God, to be stricken of God. And as you view life and its trials, God will smite you on purpose. He will bring to you trials. He will bring to you sufferings on purpose.

In the biblical worldview of suffering and trials and being smitten of God is designed for you to develop your endurance in Christ, according to Romans chapter 5, verses 1 through 4, which then produces character and character produces hope. And so the end result of those who are smitten of God are better because of the battles, not bitter. And those who understand this from a Biblical worldview understand that trials and tribulations of many kinds in this world are developing my maturity in Christ, my hope in Christ, my longing for heaven, my joy in Jesus, not my joy in this world, my joy in Jesus. And so when you view yourself in this way, you are like Christ who in Isaiah chapter 53, verse 4 is recognized as one who is also smitten of God. This is important.

And if you can view this and you can be happy through hardships, you can continue in Christ without having to hit some type of speed bump that throws you off the cliff. You can continue in confidence in an almighty God and not be derailed in life and not lose years, not lose time in Christ, not lose time to anxiety and losing time to stress, not losing time to confusion, but being one who is truly in the Word and understands it.

And so, but to this one, I will look to him who was humble and contrite. Yes, contrite being attached to humble, being lowly, but also understanding that it is stricken. Isaiah 53, verse 4 says so, stricken of spirit in your spirit, in your soul, you understand these things. And last point in this text is he who trembles at my Word, trembling at my Word, trembling, trembling, trembling, one who is actually fearful and afraid of misrepresenting God's Word, one who trembles at the power of God's Word, one who understands that God is able to bless or to remove blessings. He is the rewarder of your actions. It's a fearful thing to fall into the hands of an angry God, the preacher of Hebrews said. It's a thing that we tremble before the power and the holiness of an almighty God.

Who will God look to and bless as the one who is humble and contrite and actually trembles at this Word, at the handling of such a Holy and precious thing. But to this one I will look, the one who is humble and contrite of spirit and who trembles at my Word. Ezra was like this in chapter 10 verse 3, it says those who tremble at the command of God. If you look down in chapter 66 and verse 5, the idea continues, "Hear the Word of the Lord, you who tremble at His Word."

The Word of God is not only a sharp piercing sword that can judge your innermost thoughts, but it is also one that should, with an accurate view of it, cause you to have some element of trepidation when you are studying it. Some respect and some fear and some element of trepidation as you are handling the Word of God, because you're actually putting your hands on Him. You know it's sometimes an element of trepidation to handle a really sharp knife out of the kitchen. I don't want to drop it. You don't want to walk around with a sharp knife, drop it on your foot or something and cut off a toe. Or to pick up like a newborn baby. There's a bit of fearful respect involved in that and then to a whole new level with handling the Lord and His Word. And so who does God look to? One who has a high respect, a humble respect of the Word of God. They're not resisting it, they're actually trembling to it. This is to be developed.

Point number two, develop the obedient heart. And point number three, God's sharp sword then divides the invisible things. It divides the invisible things. And we see that this sharp sword in the Greek, it denotes accuracy. The sharpness denotes accuracy. The very invisible things is what this sword can actually divide. You say to yourself, "What kinds of things are invisible?" Well, atoms are invisible, but they can be divided. Bang. Right? You add other things that can be invisible, that can be divided. Your thoughts and your intentions. Think about the fact that the Word of God can take a thought of yours and cut it. It can divide it. It can judge it. It can separate it. It can look inside of it and discern whether it's right or wrong or pure or holy or wrong.

This Greek idea exposes deception. The sword cuts away at it and no lie as tiny as it may be can evade the accuracy of God's sword. No tiny lies. No lie is of the Lord, the Bible says. No matter how little the lie is, the Word of God can pierce the conscience and divide it. The Jews knew their Jehovah God as a cutter of a covenant, as a cutter, one who cuts things. This makes perfect sense in the Jews' mind to see the Word of God as something that can penetrate and cut its ability to judge the secret and the hidden things of the heart. It actually is everything bare, the text says in verse 13. Everything is laid bare to the eyes of Him. God can see everything. Total exposure is at view. And so you don't like to air your dirty laundry, no, nor do I. But before God, everything is laid bare. Even the invisible things of the intentions of our hearts.

Proverbs chapter 15 verse 3 says this, Proverbs 15:3, "The eyes of the Lord are in every place watching the evil and the good." So God sees thoughts. God sees feelings. God sees what the brain activity is doing. And God sees what's rumbling inside of the heart. God's sword can do heart surgery and brain surgery through its conviction. First Samuel chapter 16 and verse 7 says this, God sees not as man sees. First Samuel 16:7, "God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart, the intentions of the heart." God knows these things. God knows your progressive heart attitudes. He knows which you are allowing to linger. Nothing escapes God. Numbers 32, verse 23. Numbers 32:23. "Be sure your sin will find you out." Nothing escapes God.

And so all of these things are made known by Christ. Now it seems to me that the preacher of Hebrews here does not make a hard break in the transition from this particular point to the next area of study. Therefore, since we have such a great High Priest, it's not a hard break in recognizing that our salvation's rest in Christ and the power of the Word of God and Christ being our High Priest. It's not a hard break here. All of this stuff is kind of seamless as it kind of blends together. And the priest then could see defects of a lamb. The priest then would be cutting the lamb to offer it as a burnt sacrifice, as a sacrifice to be burnt. And so inside of the lamb, if there was a disease or something, it would have a spot. It would be impure. He would not offer that to the Lord. And so the priest could see these defects. All things are laid open to Christ, our King.

And therefore, since we have such a High Priest, Hebrews 4, verse 14, therefore since we have such a High Priest who cuts to the core and knows and judges the things of the heart, may we truly then be trepidatious at this. You literally have a sword in front of you. You cannot conceal sin and get away with it. And so it's a trepidatious thing to try and grab onto a sin and hide it, because you know that our Savior has a sword. So God swiftly strikes sometimes. Oftentimes, King Herod was one who was struck swiftly in Acts chapter 12. Immediately he was struck because he did not give glory to God, but the Word of God continued on. That's Acts chapter 12, verses 21 through 24. Herod had been very disobedient. He took God's glory. God struck him down. But the Word of God continued on.

We have a High Priest who was able, who was a precise surgeon. He can end the things or he can continue to refine things. Point number four is that this, God's sharp sword then divides and conquers. This is a particular thing that the Jews would have understood because the Word of God was a reference in their mind to the Messiah. When you say that phrase, it's a catchphrase, the Word of God. It's a reference to of the Messiah. Okay? That's how the Jews would have heard this imagery. And so a Jewish understanding of the Messiah, especially here in Hebrews, this reference was commonly known as representing Him as a warrior, as a conqueror. And so that is what scholars would say.

And I think that then we can look at Revelation together, chapter 19, verses 11 through 16, and see just how the Word of God comes from our Savior. Turn with me if you would to Revelation chapter 19. Revelation 19, verse 11. And you're going to see this sharp sword again pop up. Revelation 19, verses 11 and following says, "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse, and he that being Christ who sat on it is called faithful and true, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and his head are many diadems, and he has a name written on him which no one knows except Himself, and he is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God."

Verse 14, "And the armies which are in heaven clothed with fine linen white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron, and He treads the winepress of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty, and on his robe and on his thigh he has a name written King of Kings and Lord of Lords." And so don't forget that when Christ comes again, the Word of God comes from His mouth like a sword, and Christ is coming again.

Take home truth number one that I believe that we can take from this text is that we should respond optimistically. Respond optimistically. How you respond to pain and how you respond to things in life, how you respond to God's Word, how you respond to how God is providentially working things out in your life, it really, really matters. Nurses and doctors will say how a patient responds to surgery optimistically or pessimistically really makes a big difference on the recovery and how short it is or how long it is. And so with a positive mindset, with a positive response to it, there is a better recovery pattern. And so how you respond really, really matters.

Responding optimistically to all of what and let's just take a hypothetical situation, for example, in that you, I would not think this of you, but say you did something wrong and then you fell under conviction. God's sharp sword pierced your heart right away. I should not have said that. That comes to your mind or some striking point of conviction sets into your heart as soon as you thought about doing something wrong. How you respond at that moment matters. And so I would say to you to respond to God's Word optimistically, humbly, with a contrite heart, even with a trepidatious heart and be obedient in this way, the psalmist viewed it like this in Psalm 119:71. Psalm 119:71 is a very important verse for you to be able to have in your mental repertoire when it comes to responding optimistically to perhaps the pain of being under conviction or the pain of life and suffering, whatever the case might be. Psalm 119:71, the psalmist said this, "It was good that I was afflicted."

What a different view. Now have you been under affliction for quite some time now? Well, the psalmist said it was good that I was afflicted. That is an optimistic response to what God has been working out in your life. And so the one who is maybe thinking to themselves, "I don't deserve to have had to gone through this affliction. I don't deserve to have to be gone through all of this suffering. I should not have had to do the I, I, I, I, pride, pride, pride stance." They're not responding optimistically to the circumstances. They're actually condemning God. They're saying, "God, You did something wrong to me." And so God's sovereignty needs to be celebrated even if it is painful. God's sovereignty is providence, is working all things for your good and His glory. And so how you respond makes a big difference.

And children, when you have your parents correct you, respond optimistically, "Yes, ma'am. Yes, sir. Do not delay in your obedience. This is training for you in how you walk with the Lord. Do not delay in saying, "Yes, ma'am." And yes, here at the church, we expect our children to say, "Yes, ma'am. It's polite. Yes, sir. And not only to your own parents, but to adults as well. We're cultivating an atmosphere here to where we are going to do everything that we can to see that our children stay in Christ through the years. And this type of training really matters. And so children, if you have some repercussions for some sin, some things that you've done wrong, then accept it optimistically. Say, "I did that wrong and I'm going to accept it. That's my punishment." And parents, punish your children appropriately when they need to be punished. This helps. And so how we respond makes a difference.

The heart, when it's under conviction by God, can be pierced. It can be stricken. And that is a good thing. God is actually leading you a blessed life. He's pointing you towards joy, not taking it from you. He's pointing you towards peace, not taking it from you. He's pointing you towards blessings. Hebrews 12, verse 6 says this, "For whom He scourges," He loves. Yes, I still got some good old-fashioned King James memorized in my heart. "Whom He is gorgeous," He loves. And when we're scorched by God, when we're punished by the Lord, it is a good thing because He knows us, He cares for us. And so you may be able to say it like this, "Ouch! Thank You, Jesus." Christians respond with an optimistic way. This makes pride go away. Proverbs 16, verse 18 says, "Pride goes before fall."

Take home truth number two is to remain humble and correctable. We all have authority over us. I have authority over me. I submit to all kinds of different authorities. If you're a business owner, some people think that business owners are their own boss. They're not. All of their customers are their boss. Right? Some people think their employee, "Oh, my boss. You have authority. We have authorities, police." You name it. Governments, all kinds of authorities. But the main authority, being the Word of God, if you get that authority right, all the other authorities are easy. All the other authorities are not a problem at all. We all have authority. We need to remain humble and correctable. Okay? And in this, you are living before the face of God. You're living in view of God. You have a higher standard than earthly authorities. And so, children do not have a problem at all with your parental authority. Yield to them in what they say right away. The late obedience is disobedience.

And the same thing with that lesson being learned, when you grow into a youth and become one whom can get your driver's license, you will not have a problem at all obeying the laws of the land. You will not have a problem at all with a police authority pulling you over and talking with you about whether you are doing right or wrong. You will be yielding to that authority. And the same thing when you get a job. You'll yield to the authority. The same thing when you get married. You will yield to one another. The same thing as you live with Christ. You will yield and be underneath the authority of God. This is a matter of life. The Word of God is our authority. And how we respond in every sphere of life really matters because ultimately God is the ultimate authority. And He is orderly. And He has planned and ordained and designed all of these things. And how we operate underneath authority matters.

How do you do that? Remain humble and correctable. Don't give up the vibe that I got everything under control and you can't tell me anything. Be correctable. If someone says to you, "Hey, can I talk to you about something?" Be humble and be correctable. Don't all of a sudden put up a shield, a vibe or something like that or get defensive. Don't do that. Be humble and be correctable. In fact, invite that. If there is something that I can do better, share with them. Please share with me that which I cannot see. Help me to be a better Christian. You see something I don't know. That's what we're here for, right? Fellowship of the brethren is wonderful. God uses the gifts to minister to each other. Don't be one who protects your conscience and protects your heart to the point to where like any little thing is earth shattering. If somebody says something to you and you're like a house of cards or a glass house, it just shatters. Don't be like that. Be one who is transparent, open, and honest.

I'm confident that I'm doing my best in Christ. If there's anything that I can do better, I will. I'm not perfect. You're not perfect. So, remain humble and correctable. This is not just for children. It's not just for youth. It's not just for young adults. It's not just for seniors. It's for everybody to remain humble and correctable. And so, it's very important to be able to be scrutinized, to be able to be rebuked, to be able to be corrected. The really good thing about God's sword is that He doesn't come and just start chopping. He will take this sword and He will just give a little touch.

Have you been poked by the Holy Spirit before? No. Oh, I know exactly what is being touched. I will obey. I will adjust. I understand. God, You have made me... All You got to do is give me a little pierce, a little touch, and I will respond optimistically, recorrect my life, adjust my speaking, my thinking, my feelings, my whatever, my intentions, everything that God can see, I will correct my course. It's just what the Word of God is for in 2 Timothy 3:16. It is for rebuking and correcting. It's got to first rebuke you to tell you where the error is and then correct you on the right course. It's a double-edged sword. That's what the early church fathers thought that was meant by the double-edged sword. There's not a lot of strength behind it, but it really makes a lot of logical sense and that the double-edged sword is for rebuking and correcting. It can do both things. It can show you the error of your ways and help get you back onto the right course. And so this is a benefit of being a Christian, is to be one who is humble and correctable.

And now, as we start to wrap up this concept here, I would just simply say, if you have never been one who has fallen underneath conviction of the Word of God, then most likely you're not saved. You have not entered into what is in this passage the rest of the Lord Jesus resting in Christ. And so the Bible says that if you would confess that you are a sinner, you understand by the Word of God, the ultimate Judge, that what sin is you have committed. You violated God's Holy Law. You don't even have to read all of the Ten Commandments to know that I'm a sinner, I'm a filthy sinner, I'm a wretched fool without Christ if you've never felt that piercing conviction of God before. The first thing that the Word of God is going to do is pierce your heart unto repentance so that you repent and you confess the sin. And so when you repent of your sin, that means to turn away from it. That means that I recognize, Lord, all of these different areas for which I have fallen short, all of these sins come with a death penalty for the wages of sin is death. I realize that now because the Word of God has made that plain to me. I understand it, Lord. I'm pierced to the heart. I'm under conviction.

And according to 2 Corinthians chapter 7 and verse 10, this repentance then will lead you to salvation, to salvation. And so be saved. Believe in the death and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ as a substitutionary death and payment for your sin. You know that your sin has a wage. You will be paid for your sin, which is eternal death in hell forever. You'll be paid back everything you've ever done wrong, any eternity for hell, except perhaps you believe in Christ by faith and confess Him as Lord and Savior. You can evade an eternity in hell because Jesus came and died in your place. And so confess Him as Lord, confess Him as Christ as Lord of your life, confess Him just like the preacher in Isaiah chapter 5 was pleading with the stubborn Israelites who you could say grew up in church, went to church all their life. They know the lingo. They know what day to do what. They know what feast is coming. They know all the right things to do. But yet, just like in Matthew, Jesus would say, "Depart from me, you doers of iniquity. I never knew you." He's talking to the church crowd. He's talking to the people in the pews. I'm not preaching to people outside of the church. I'm preaching right now to us.

You're here if you have never been saved. Jesus has lots of passages for church people, for the people of God, and within the church. There's two different views of viewing this. You can say the church collectively, the ones who are saved, but within those who are coming to the walls that we call church, there's always going to be wheat and tares. There's always going to be a mixture of those who are saved and unsaved. There's always going to be people who are coming and in routine of doing church that are religious but not right with the Lord. And so listen to me. Just as Isaiah was saying to the Israelites, which they ended up being, the example for which the Hebrews see back in history as what not to do, we now have that same example as ones whom are underneath preaching and teaching. We are like Israel being collectively led by God. And it is true that people who think they are saved can be wrong. They can be sincere and at the same time wrong.

And so just as Isaiah says, "Come to the waters. Come and eat. Come and hear. Listen that you may live." The difference between one who is saved and not saved goes on and on and on. But I would say to you today, one primary way that you could know that you are saved or not is that if you desire God's Word, the point of today's passage, the Word of God, does your soul long for the Word of God? Do you have something inside of you, that being the Holy Spirit, that being Jesus, that being a saved soul? Do you have an inner longing and drawing and pull to the Word of God? And since we're on this roll of imagery in the text, some of the best imagery for this concept is as the dear pants for the water brooks. So my soul thirst for Thee.

I would simply say to you, my friends, if you do not have a heart for God's Word, if you have a soul that longs to know and to understand God more, and more, and more through His Word, I would come to Jesus and be saved.

Let's pray together. Lord, thank You so much for this time. I pray that You would continue to convict the lost to be saved. And just like the preacher Isaiah was calling the lost to come and be saved, giving them an invitation to repent and be pardoned of their sins, I pray too as well that they would come and be saved. They don't have to walk an aisle, they don't have to kneel down at an altar, they just need to bow the posture of their heart before You and confess that they are sinner and need to be saved and believe that You died on the cross and rose again for their sin. And I pray, dear God, as well as You continue to develop the salvation within the saints, those who are saved, who are working out their own salvation, who are saved, gloriously saved, and have eternal security, but yet still deal with that lingering sin. I pray that You would help us to use the Word of God to cut away sin at its root, that we could be like a doctor, like a physician administering surgery to ourself, cutting away at the deepest parts of our heart and soul with the Word of God, saying what the Word of God has to say about our sin. May we continue to address it and to mortify sin, to remove sin, to repent of our sin, and to hate our sin and to view You as glorious. Turn from our wicked ways and continue to pursue You. Lord, I pray that Your Word will continue to do such a mighty work in this church like it is. We glorify Your Holy Name for it. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.