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 (Philemon & Hebrews)
Lesson 9: Diligence and Assurance (Heb 6:9-20)

Lesson 9: Diligence and Assurance (Heb 6:9-20)

Observation

Outline

Encouragement to Be Diligent (6:9-12)

Certainty of God’s Promise (-20)

Key Words/Phrases

Confident, salvation, diligence, full assurance of hope, until the end, through faith and patience inherit the promises, swear/oath, immutability of His counsel, consolation, fled for refuge, hope, anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast, forerunner.

Segment Analysis

1a.  He knows from their work and labor of love that they were people of faith rather than unbelievers who have rejected God. He also knows that God, who is faithful, will reward them accordingly. Thus, he is optimistic about their future, and particularly, their salvation.

1b.  According to the passage, the believers had been active in their faith and love, but they seemed to have become stagnant. Although it is not necessarily an indication that they have fallen away, it is surely a cause for concern, for the possibility of falling away is real, not hypothetical.

2.   We must be diligent to the very end.

3.   Sluggishness could result from complacency and false security (cf. Rev 3:1,17). It may also be caused by sin’s deceitfulness, which leads to apostasy (Heb -13). The pleasures of this world may harden our hearts and bring about spiritual stagnancy and even backsliding. Regardless of the cause, sluggishness is an indication of unbelief. A true believer is not unproductive but bears fruit and is useful to the Lord (6:7; cf. 2Pet 1:8-11).

5.   Verse 12 teaches us to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. The author here goes on to cite Abraham’s example for our imitation.

6.   We ought to imitate Abraham’s patient endurance, with which he waited for God’s promise (15).

7.   It confirms the promise and makes it even more sure, for an oath puts an end to all dispute (16). Whereas human beings would swear by someone greater, who would bring punishment upon the one taking the oath if he fails to keep his word, God swore by Himself since he could swear by no one greater (13). God’s oath, which is an oath of the highest order, adds even greater weight to His promise, which is in itself perfectly reliable. Even though God did not need to swear, He did it to show more abundantly to the heirs of the promise the immutability of God’s counsel (17).

8a.  The promise (or counsel) and the oath.

8b.  He tells us that God’s purpose in providing the immutable is to give us consolation, and he assures us that our hope is sure and steadfast (18-19).

9.   We have escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust in order to be partakers of the divine nature (2 Pet 1:4). Christ is our refuge, in whom we are sheltered from the snare and bondage of the devil.

10a. This anchor is our hope, which is made possible through the atoning work of Jesus Christ (19-20).

 

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