Tabor Baptist Church

Introduction

• People will turn away from the gospel
• 1 Tim 4:1
• 2 Thess 2:3
• Matt 24:11-13
• People will turn away from the gospel
• There will be apostasy in the last days
• We as Christians need to endure to the end
• Last week we were exhorted to draw near will confidence of faith
• Today it is about not drawing back
• A trumpet blast against apostasy (v26, v29)
• Terrible punishment await such as these (v29, v31)
• We must not give up Jesus Christ and return back to our Jewish ways
• Quote from Andy Murray
• Come in with boldness but be careful because the gates of hell are wide open
• People are willing to think of heaven but not of hell
• Jesus spoke often about hell (see the gospels)
• Hell reminds us how serious sin is
• Hell reminds us of the Holiness and purity of God
• Quote from Spurgeon
• The passage ends with tremendous encouragement

How does apostasy begin?

• Apostasy is turning your back completely on Jesus Christ
• It begins by neglect
• Neglect in prayer
• Neglect in fellowship
• Neglect in reading their bible
• Neglect in coming to church
• This pattern may take months to years
• Then they make a decision not to follow Jesus Christ anymore
• The antidote - encourage yourself with 10:23-25
• What does to "sin willfully" mean (v26)?
• The Christian doesn't enjoy sin
• The sin here is a heart that never wants to please God/against God
• Example from John McArthur
• We have to be careful when we judge
• Example of James Montgomery
• God brought him back - he was not a apostate
• Example of Daniel Defoe
• He was not saved until aged 54
• Apostasy is one who has known the truth and rejected it
• The writer is concerned that people are giving up the faith altogether
• The sensitive Christian in a sensitive state - a clear indication of your love for Him, repent of your sin
• The person who couldn't care less - we ought not to give a false peace to them

What is apostasy?

• Heb 6 - a person who has been enlightened, who has knowledge of the truth
• They have come into the presence of God
• They have felt something of the stirring of the conscience
• They have known something of the Holy Spirit
• They defiantly reject it all
• The Bible has examples of those who turned back:
• Demas
• Judas
• Saul
• Hophni and Phinneas (the Sons of Eli)
• 1 John 2:19
• Example of Charles Russell
• There will be a great punishment for those who reject (v26-29)
• cf Deut 17
• How much worse to reject the very Son of God over Moses?
• Jesus was sanctified - He was set apart from the world
• People that have been separated from the world by God
• Illustration of a homeless person rejecting help
• Insulting the Spirit of Grace - like spitting in the face of God
• Apostasy is a terrible position to be in
• To be in the hand of God
• We need to pray for anyone that starts to go back

How do we avoid apostasy (v32-39)?

• The author is convinced that these people will not draw back and encourages them to continue on
• v32-33
• It is almost as if you didn't suffer (though they did)
• Heaven was in your mind, Jesus was in your mind
• You were not attached to earthly possessions (v34)
• Remember living hope, joy and vibrancy
• Not every Christian has a dramatic conversion experience like this
• Every Christian experiences a new birth
• Every Christian shows a change
• Remember how good God has been to us throughout our lives (v35)
• Continue on by faith (for you began by faith)
• Personal example of friend
• Example of Job
• Simply this: carry on, living by faith, trusting in Jesus Christ
• We are not those who draw back (v39)
• What God has started in us - He will complete
• Once saved, always saved (10:14)
• The writer is not teaching that you can lose your salvation
• If you are an apostate you never had faith (were never a Christian) at all
• Heb 6:9
• If you turn your back on God, He will deny you
• If you trust and have faith in God, He will never forsake you

Closing Remarks

• Heaven is wide open for all who believe in Jesus Christ
• But hell is also wide open for those who reject Him
• Trust in the Lord Jesus Christ