"The Chosen Rebellion"

“ The Chosen Rebellion”

Hebrews chapter 3 reveals the rebellion of the chosen people of Israel, The Chosen Rebellion.

Hebrews 3:16-19 (NLT)
16  And who was it who rebelled against God, even though they heard his voice? Wasn’t it the people Moses led out of Egypt?
17  And who made God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it the people who sinned, whose corpses lay in the wilderness?
18  And to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn’t it the people who disobeyed him?
19  So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest.

God chose Israel to be His holy people. God’s purpose was to reveal Himself and His glory to the world through the Chosen People of Israel. But who was it that rebelled? The Chosen!

God sent Moses to Egypt to break the bondage of their slavery, and God chose to set them free. But who was it that rebelled against the One who came to set them free? The Chosen!

God prepared a Promised Land for the Chosen People of Israel. But who did those corpses in the wilderness belong to? The Chosen!

And what was their crime against God? What did The Chosen do that kept them from the Promised Land and the rest that God had freely offered to them? Unbelief! They refused to believe God. The chosen people of Israel believed in God, but refused to believe God’s Word.

That brings up the issue of genuine saving faith, belief vs. unbelief.  The Chosen of Israel refused to trust God’s Word, the very Word that guaranteed them rest in the Promised Land. In that moment, their hearts turned to unbelief. And unbelief is fatal.

Hebrews 11:6 (NLT)
6  And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

But what about the church? Like Israel, we have been Chosen, called by God to experience the freedom and forgiveness of Christ. Is there a similar danger for the church today that believes in God, but does not believe God’s Word?

The same chapter of Hebrews that reveals The Chosen Rebellion also gives a warning to the Chosen Church to be very careful not to fall into the same deadly trap as Israel.

Hebrews 3:12-15 (NLT)
12  Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God.
13  You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God.
14  For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.
15  Remember what it says: “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled.”

Yes, faith begins by believing that God exists. But we must also believe that God rewards those who earnestly seek to follow Him, following His Word that leads us into the Promised Land of rest. Beware of the Chosen Rebellion. Those who give lip service to God (believe in God) but refuse to give their full heart to Him and put their trust in His Word (believe God).

Matthew 15:7-9 (NLT)
7  You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,
8  ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
9  Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’”

Terry Cooper: Lead Pastor