[Pastor Ralph]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

[Commissioned]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer?
I believe that when the writer of Hebrews speaks of the promise "rest," he is referring to the Believers' time in heaven. It is the promise for all Believers, to enter into a blessed rest when the work on earth is done and God calls them home.

"Then I heard a voice from heaven say, 'Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' 'Yes,' says the Spirit, 'they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.'" (Revelation 14:13)

Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"?
The writer urges us to, "Make every effort to enter that rest," because the devil is on the other hand is making every effort to prevent us from entering that rest.

"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10 (KJV)

What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?
From time to time Christians may find themselves falling into sin, but at the same time they will repent and pray that the Holy Spirit of God will enable them to overcome such temptations. Apostasy from Christ, however, is a falling away from the faith without remorse and not seeking to repent.

[Tabatha]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

God wants us to enter His rest, For the israelites of Moses' time, this rest was the earthly rest to be found in the promised land for Christians, it is peace with God now and eternal life on a new earth later. we do not need to wait for the next life to enjoy God's rest and peace, we may have it daily now! Our daily rest in the Lord will not end with death. but will become an eternal rest in the place that Christ is preparing for us

If Jesus has provided for our rest through faith, why must we "make every effort to enter that rest"? This is not the struggle of doing good in order to obtain salvation; nor is it a mystical struggle to overcome selfishness. It refers to making every effort to appreciate and benefit from what God has already provided. Salvation is not to be taken for granted; to appropriate the gift God offers requires decision and commitment.
This tends to make them watchful and diligent, and so keeps them from apostasy.
In Verses 3: 12-14 They are being warned to realize their own weakness. He describes the kind of heart that commits apostasy.

"Sinful" ( NIV ) and "evil" ( KJV< NRSV ) is poneros, " pertaining to being morally or socially worthless, wicked, evil, bad, base, worthless, vicious, degenerate."

"Unbelieving" ( NIV, NRSV ), "unbelief" ( KJV) is apistia, "unwillingness to commit oneself to another or respond positively to the other's words or actions, lack of belief, un belief.

( APOSTASY )Defection from one's faith. cause, abandonment of professed religious or other principles. Walking away from Christ, turning one's back on christianity. No longer following their beliefs in Christ.



Iamountain If you study the answers the brothers and sisters have given hopefully they will help you understand the questions. God's blessing to you.

[charisbarak]

I think the rest mentioned in Hebrews could be heaven where we would cease to go through the struggles of the world. I think peace would be a close second--like the gravestones--Rest in Peace.
There is also a rest (peace) knowing we are in God's will--not struggling with Him or against him in disobedience.

I think we can enter that rest (peace) somewhat when we are totally in God's will--obeying Him. I think back in the Old Testament--"there is no peace for the wicked." We strive daily to stay in communion with God to look to our blessed hope of Jesus returning & heaven for us.

Apostacy is our choosing to live in sin rather than to obey & repent. We will sin--but we need to confess it and get right with God right away.

[zam]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

He meant eternal rest which is a promise for each believer.

Because of the grave situations in the context where human live. Human beings are prone to temptations which drags the believers away from what they believed. The author of Hebrews perceived this great danger which is just like a slippery slope where christians might slip away unless they are very careful. He reminds the believers that they should not take for granted the promises of God which will actually realize in our future life when we add up our faith.

'Apostacy from Christ' as far as I understand means 'voluntary rejection of Christ'. Whereas 'falling into sin' is the one which each believer fall without knowing it. In this case if they know that they had fallen into a trap, there is a way out where they'll try to regain back what they had lost.

[Stan]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?


I believe that He is refering to that heavenly rest that Jesus is preparing for us who believe and contiue in the faith. If we stand fast to the teaching of the word and write it on our hearts we will strengthen our faith and come to that place where Christ said He was going to prepare for us. We must make every effort in that we must continue to do the job Jesus gave us in spreading the gosple and loving one another,by this we continue in the faith and keep His commandments for us.

Apostasy is the turning away giving up the knowledge that Christ is Lord and the only Saviour that we have and His is the only gosple that can bring us to the Father and into His rest. It is differant from sin in that with sin you still have faitha nd that faith will convict you and lead you to repent but the other is a complete turnig away from Christ giving over you faith to follow the worldly life and not have the desire to turn and repent for the joy of the Lord is giving over to **** and God hardens the heart so that you will no longer have a desire to worship Him and He will no longer lead you to Him and turn from you and leave you to spend your eternal life with the devil and his angles.

[lamountain]

I have said many times that i am a new believer and for some reason I had a really hard time understanding this part. Im not real sure what he ment by rest. and im not sure I understand what it is that was being taught to me this time so I am adding an email reply so that anyone who can explain this to me can.

[PATJOE]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

There can be many different interpretations, but in my opinion, the primary one is that Christians totally trusting God can find this rest every single day. It is not restful when we try to control outcomes for our families, our trials and troubles, but what a relief from these (sometimes daily) problems to know He is waiting and will receive them and handle them for us. This is wonderful rest as to "give it to God" and leave it with Him relaxes our tensions. When we trust God, we can live at rest and know He is in control. We are urged by the writer to hold on to this faith in God and not lose it, so that we do not miss out on God's promise of Eternal Life with Him. If we stay focused on the Cross and what Christ has done for us, in our place, it is a restful truth that we can rely on. Apostasy is a permanent abandonment from what we were originally taught. It is deliberate. When Christians fall into sin from time to time, it is not a deliberate act against God. It is the part and parcel of being human, not having been given the state of perfection yet, but it is coming on the last day when Christ Himself delivers us into the glory of God in Heaven.

[JustJeff]

Personally, the rest that I can relate to in Heb 4:8-11 is that which we enter into when we walk in the Spirit. When I am in the flesh everything around me seems burdensome. From the temptations that come from the **** of the flesh to the turbulent and wicked world in which we live, heavy loads indeed. The Holy Spirit keeps me in tune with the Lord, with Him, who is the heavy load lifter and the burden bearer, a sweet peace and rest to my soul at all times. Who wouldn't want to work their hardest to enter into such a rest?
Being a Christian does not exempt us from sin, it makes us aware of it when we do sin, by the conviction of the soul. In this manner we can repent and continue on with the Lord. Apostasy is to turn away from God, returning to our sinful lifestyles, dead to Him. How dreadful.

[Umberto]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer?

First, I think it mean the same thing that many of my fellow posters have already mentioned, that the rest is the eternal rest of all who die in belief of Christ. I also believe that the rest of God is a rest for today. The more I walk the more I realize that as I try to do anything in my own strength I am apt to fail, be weary and miserable. Jesus said in in Matt 11:30 "my yoke is easy and my burden is light." I believe this rest is also a rest for today.

Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"?

Given the consequences of not making any effort... yet I have a problem with the fine line between my effort and God's work. It is a source of needed prayer.

What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

Apostasy is a turning of one's back on Christ. Falling into temporary sin like we all apt to is more like closing your eyes to what is still right in front of you. You can pretend it is not there, but you know it is still there.

[Helenmm]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

I think this is the rest of the spirit very much related to lacking a fear of death. One of the amazing things about Christians is that they don't fear death, Rather it becomes a sort of graduation ceremony in which we say - and mean quite literally - "See you later!" More than any other person a Christian is confident about what s/he does because it is Spirit directed. There simply isn't the same fear, worry or concern that other people experience, because Jesus is Lord and ajeverything is in His hands! If they chop off our head for our faith, it doesn't faze us that much for we have eternal life. We know the Father, The Saviour and the Spirit of Truth, and that is not only at this moment in time, but it is eternal knowledge. Nothing can interfere with our wonderful relationship with Jesus Christ (unless we decide it can). If we can't handle a situation, we do our best, then give it to God with great confidence. We are at peace. We are at rest! We might be busy doing many things, but even that can't take our peace, joy and rest from us. We have knowledge that the world can't have, so they'll never understand our peace until they submit to Jesus. Our relationship with Him is rest, is Heaven, is peace.

We are to see that we enter into His rest because it is life. Not to have it is not to have life in the Spirit. We are to live in dynamically restful relationship with Jesus right up until we finish the race and go to be with Him. Not to enter His rest is to miss out on eternal life.

Apostasy is unbelief in the Word of God, in Jesus as the resurrected son of a virgin, and in the saving power of the blood of Jesus. It's the one hurdle God can't get over, and the one sin He can do nothing about. It brings repentance to a halt and makes relationship (and God's rest) impossible! Christians may fall into other sins, repent and be forgiven, but repentance will not take place if a person doesn't believe in Dhrist. It's the ultimate, thick-headed, rebellious act of arrogance and separation.(They like to call it independence!). Jesus can do nothing about it, unless they change their mind and submit! The sinner who ocasionally falls still believes in Jesus and is quick to keep short accounts - to repent. But unbelief separates.

[masika]

God wants us to enter His rest. For us believers, it is peace with God now and eternal life on a new eart later. We do not need to wait for the next life to enjoy rest and peace; we may have it daily now! Our daily rest in the Lord will not end with death but will become an eternal rest in the place that Christ is preparing for us.
The writer is telling us to make every effort to enter that rest, He is not meaning that, we struggle by doing good in order to obtain salvation, nor is it a mystical struggle to overcome selfishines. He is refering that we make every effort to appreciate and benefit from what God Has already provided. Salvation is not to be taken for grante; to appropriate the gift God offers requires decision and commitment.

[Lisa Rupert]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?
I believe that the writer means by the promise of rest that we gain when we give our lives over to Christ, when we whole heartedly surrender to him we find rest.
So the writer urges us to make every effort to enter this rest so that we won't fall by following the examples of disobedience.
Apostasy from Christ means to be sinful and unbelieving. It means that one turns away from the living God, which is different from sinning from time to time because we are aware of the implications of sin so we repent and try to move on without sinning in this way again. A unbelieving one does not believe in the implications of a sinful nature so continues to sin and living in disobedience against God.

[sahala p.s.]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

The writer of Hebrew means by this promise of “rest” for the believer I also tend to agree that “rest” is “heaven,” our final settling place, our spiritual home, our heavenly home.

The writer urges us: "Make every effort to enter that rest" because we can not enter that “rest” if we do not hold firmly till the end our faith. It's so easy to desert our faith. There are so many things to distract us from Christ. Without faith in Christ we are no longer “sharers” or “partners” in Christ.

The difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time is the following. The apostasy from Christ means we turn away from Christ, we no longer believe in God and Christ as our Lord and savior, we believe other beliefs to fulfill our evil desires instead. The falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time means although we has already been redeemed by Christ' s blood, God' s children, being a new creation, but as human being our sinful nature, our evil desire still try to make us sin. But if we make a sin we fell uncomfort with it, come to him and confess our sin, do not hide it and God forgive our sin. It means that we still have faith in him and make him our guide for our lives and let him make us perfect in him.

[Tabatha]

[quote name='lamountain' post='26473' date='May 15 2007, 11:39 AM']I have said many times that i am a new believer and for some reason I had a really hard time understanding this part. Im not real sure what he ment by rest. and im not sure I understand what it is that was being taught to me this time so I am adding an email reply so that anyone who can explain this to me



I am sorry about this I don't know how to remove Tabatha

[Tabatha]

I have said many times that i am a new believer and for some reason I had a really hard time understanding this part. Im not real sure what he ment by rest. and im not sure I understand what it is that was being taught to me this time so I am adding an email reply so that anyone who can explain this to me can.

I goofed on this how do I remove tabatha

This post has been edited by Tabatha: 16 May 2007 - 01:43 AM

[Patricia A]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

It carries a similar idea for the writer of Hebrews, who seems to be building an analogy between Israel's sojourn in the wilderness and entry into the Promised Land, and the Christian's experience. Bruce notes, "The New Testament bears witness, in a number of places, to a primitive and widespread Christian interpretation of the redemptive work of Christ in terms of a new Exodus.[/size]

We must make every effort to enter that rest so that we will know the true joy of serving the Lord because we want to glorify Him and will know true rest for our spirit by doing this.

Apostasy from Christ means not accepting Him as our Saviour and Lord. It is different from falling into sin and yet not denying Christ. We fall into sin and because of our faith in Christ, we ask for forgiveness and strive to not commit this sin again.[size="4"]

[Craig]

Believers cease their efforts to earn their salvation by works and rest in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Also, ultimately, the believer's final rest may also be in view here as revealed in Revelation 14:13: "...Yes, says the Spirit, they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them."

The writer urges us to make every effort to enter that rest because human beings seem to be so easily distracted by the world. People seem to easily displace Jesus and their spiritual lives with temporal things. People are easily distracted as those Israelites with Moses were, despite God's active intervention in their lives.

Apostasy is an outright rejection and turning away from Jesus Christ. Christians sin everyday, but repent to God, and continue to grow in the faith; continue to serve God; continue their Christian walk and fellowship.

[Ms CJ]

Q3. (Hebrews 4:8-11) What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer? Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"? What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

What do you think the writer of Hebrews means by this promise of "rest" for the believer?

Looking at John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

In light of these verses of scriptures we see that from the beginning of creation that Christ, the Son of the Living God was with the Father and that upon the creation of man God had already prepared a way of salvation for mankind. He knew man would fall because man was made of flesh and not spirit.
In reading verse 3 and you compare it to the book of Ephesians we will see that In Him all things were started and ended In Him.
Eph 1:3-14
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

So, we see that from the beginning of time to coming of Jesus to the promise of eternal life that God on the seventh day entered in to a Rest and just as we see and know Him to be Faithful in all He has done for mankind that we can be assured that He has made a way and covered every thing and that nothing has been left undo since the beginning of what we know as our time. Every provision needed under the sun has been taken care of since the sixth day of creation and this why scripture reads He is a God that never changes because He has set everything by His word, with His word and through His word.
This is our promise of hope that He has been there from the beginning and will be there at the end of what we know of this world. That's the rest we rest into.

Why does the writer urge us: "Make every effort to enter that rest"?

Once again in reading above you see that we need Jesus, He is the only way to the salvation plan of God and we must do all we can not only to enter into this rest, but we must learn to stay in this rest.

What is the difference between apostasy from Christ and the kind of falling into sin that all Christians experience from time to time?

Apostasy is to turn totally away from Christ and to deny the cross and the eternal hope we have been given. To stop preaching the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ and to stop living a holy life after He has revealed Himself and deny Him.

The falling into sin by some that have a heart that stays in a humble contrite way before the Lord and ask for forgiveness and turns from that sin is truly in a relationship with Him and He knows that we will from time to time sin but its the condition of the heart and how we love Him and worship Him and know that what Paul was talking about above that we must live in Him always.

[PCHRIS]

I beleive that the 'rest' is our spiritual rest [heaven] which is reserved for the 'people of God' [beleivers]

The word 'strive' involves some degree of haste and this is in line with the various solemn warnings which the writer gives, giving the writer clearly thinks that there is grave danger of history repeating itself even though he has given no indication that his readers had as yet been guilty of 'the same sort of disobedience'.

Apostasy is a complete turnaround away from Christ and what He has done on the cross while us 'falling' into sin turn TO Christ with Godly sorrow, repent and press on with our faith/obedience to Christ.