The sermon 'One Anothering' by Michael Templeton focuses on the responsibilities Christians have toward one another, particularly within a covenant church community. Based on Hebrews Chapter 10, the sermon emphasizes the transition from theological exposition about the superiority of Jesus Christ to practical pastoral application. The speaker highlights the three 'let us' phrases which are foundational commands for Christians: drawing near with a true heart, holding fast the confession of hope, and considering one another to stir up love and good works. Templeton underscores the importance of assembling together, not forsaking the gathering of believers, and the critical role of exhorting one another to prevent a heart of unbelief. The sermon draws on various biblical examples, such as Nathan's confrontation of David, to illustrate the importance of accountability, encouragement, and communal perseverance in faith. The speaker urges believers to study, stir up, and spur one another on, emphasizing that the antidote to unbelief is daily exhortation grounded in the Word of God. This mutual responsibility is crucial for preventing apostasy and ensuring steadfast faith.

I'll begin in verse 19 and read through 25. Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he consecrated for us through the veil that is his flesh. And having a high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching.

Let's pray. Our Father, we do thank you that through your kindness and your love towards us, you have given us your word to guide us, to exhort us. And, Lord, you've also given us your Spirit to teach us, and to illumine our minds, and to help us even in our weakness, Lord, to understand what you have said to us through your word. Now I pray that you would give us sharpness of mind, Lord, that we would be able to concentrate as Michael brings the word to us. Lord, strengthen him, I pray.

I pray that you would uphold Him and give Him your words, Lord, and give us all ears to hear and to receive. And Lord, may you be glorified even in the proclamation of your word to us. In Christ's name we pray, amen. I bring you greetings from Sovereign Redeemer Community Church this morning. It's a privilege to be here with you and open up God's Word with you.

I especially want to thank you for the prayers that have been offered up already on my behalf. It's my heart's desire as our brother prayed earlier, is for this to be for you to, for me to worship up here as I preach and for you to enter into that. Just listen, don't feel like you have to turn. I'm going to introduce the topic. The title of the sermon today is, It's One Anothering.

I'm not quite sure that's even a word, but you'll get the gist of it as we work our way through Hebrews chapter 10. But I want to introduce it by reading an example of this being practiced in Scripture out of 2 Samuel chapter 12. And The Lord sent Nathan to David, and he came to him and said to him, There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds, But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished. And it grew up together with him and with his children.

It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his own bosom. And it was like a daughter to him. And a traveler came to the rich man who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him. But he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him. And so David's anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die and and he shall restore fourfold for the lamb because he did this thing and because he had no pity and then Nathan said to David you are the man Jumping down to verse 13, and so David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord.

When was the last time Someone here at hope held you accountable Spoke an encouraging word or or lovingly rebuked you When was the last time that you did that for someone? For someone else Think back on your life as a Christian and recollect the times a brother or sister spoke into your life and how that affected you. I would venture to say at least for my own life that that the times that that has happened rivals the best sermon I've ever heard preached. The effect and the impact of a brother or sister bringing not their own opinions, I'm not talking about the bad experiences when someone's come with an axe to grind or, you know, their pet project and misappropriately rebuked you or brought God's, what they thought was the application of God's Word to you. I'm talking about the appropriate and right times, times that it went down deep and affected you.

So, as you think about that, That's where I want to take us today, out of Hebrews 10 and then in Hebrews chapter 3. The main point of the sermon today, the main point of the sermon is every Christian, especially covenant members, covenant church members, have, and I choose this word intentionally, I choose this word carefully. I thank Mike for reading Corinthians chapter 12. I forget the, how the, what word was used there, but the equivalent is we have an indispensable Responsibility, I think it was necessary towards one another Every Christian especially covenant church members have an indispensable responsibility toward one another's perseverance. So let's, if you're not already there from the reading, let's look at Hebrews chapter 10.

I want to set the context. In the amount of time that I have today, there's no way that I can exposit thoroughly 19 through 25. My intentions are to focus in on verses 24 and 25, but feel the need because of what runs prior to verses 24 and 25 to set the context. And so let's do that by quickly working our way down from verse 19 and Verse 19 just to set even the bigger picture of where we're at in Hebrews Verse 19 marks the transition for the entire letter. Chapters 1 through 10, verse 18, are primarily a sustained theological exposition of the superiority of Jesus Christ.

And then we come to verse 19 and through the rest of the letter, and it's primarily a pastoral application. The author in chapter 13, the last chapter, in verse 22, he calls his letter. It's so helpful when the writers tell us the purpose for which they're writing the letter in the Gospel of John. We're in John as well, and at the end of John, I think I must have heard the verse fifty times so far, but he tells us the purpose so that you would believe, right? I'm sure you all have heard that many times.

So, At the end of the letter, the Hebrews, the author tells us what his letter's intention is and he calls his letter a word of exhortation, a word of exhortation. It's helpful to consider the structure and the components of the letter in light of Hym identifying what the letter is meant to be. I hope that feeds into the applications of us learning how better to exhort and encourage one another. Verses 19 through 25 actually comprise a single long sentence in the original languages. The sentence moves from the indicatives or just to to imperatives or commands given to us from foundational truths to to x to 3 specifically to three exhortations So let's read verses 19 through 21 again.

Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he consecrated for us through the veil, that is, his flesh, and having a high priest over the house of God. These three verses provide the foundation for the imperatives, for the commands that he's going to give us next. He gives us three, let us, let us, and finally where we'll camp out, let us. Verses 19 and through 21 give us the foundation for the imperatives. They teach us that Christians have boldness to enter the holiest.

Boldness and the holiest are two words that seemingly don't go together when attributing them to God's people, given who we are. We know ourselves. This should be shocking to us just to have boldness and the holiest coupled together Especially all the more in the sense of going into the holiest Can you imagine what a Jewish ears would be kind of reeling from with the context of what they have with temple worship and in the temple of God in the middle of it is this walled off section from the rest of the temple. In this separate section was the holy place, which contained an even further in room called the Holy of Holies, or what our author is referring to as the holiest. In the holy place, not the holiest place, but in the holy place was the altar of incense, the golden lamp stand, and the table of showbread.

Then within the holy place was that holy of holies. What our author refers to as the holiest which contained the ark of the covenant on which the mercy seat and the presence of God himself dwelt. The very epicenter of of God's presence and and holiness Where where once a year on the day of atonement the high priest? Would would go in and atone for sin, his and the people's. Christian, you and I have boldness to enter the holiest.

Boldness. How much more the sacrifice of Christ? How much greater is the sacrifice of Christ that our Author could write to you and I with all our infirmities and tell us that we are to enter boldly into the epicenter of God's holiness. This is no pat on the back for us. We all know that.

This is a magnification of the superiority of Jesus Christ. The fact that our author is coupling together boldness entering into the holiest for us should cause us to stand in awe of Jesus Christ and his perfect sacrifice. We have boldness we see in our text. We have boldness, number one, by the blood of Jesus, there in verse 19. We have boldness by the blood of Jesus, by the blood of Jesus, and it says, by a new and living way, which Jesus consecrated for us, through the veil, his flesh, his sacrifice.

And thirdly, we have boldness having a high priest over the house of God, not continuing to sacrifice himself once and for all. He's been sacrificed, but being our high priest, making intercession for us to God the Father. It is with this boldness founded on these three items, the blood of Jesus, the new and living way, his flesh being sacrificed, and him being a high priest, that we live out these three let us phrases. So based on this reality, he's saying, now do this. Based on the reality of what Christ has purchased and giving you the ability to boldly enter the holiest, now do these three things, he says.

The order of the three let us phrases is important, but I don't want you to overthink the order. It's not let us so that, or it's not let us in order to, it's three imperatives. And the foundation is based back in verses 19 through 21. So connect all three, let us phrases back to 19 through 21 There are some helpful things to draw from thinking about the first let us phrase and then moving to the second one and then finally to the third one, but they're all connected. My ability to walk up to one of you and speak the Word of God into your life is based on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Not my worthiness, not my skills and oratory. It's based on what Jesus Christ has done. Not one of us should be like, I'm just having a bad day, so you know, it's not based on having a bad day or a good day. It's based on what's been purchased for you through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. So let's dive in.

We're going to look quickly at the first two Let Us phrases, and then we'll spend more time on the third one. Verse 22, reading it again, Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. The force of this command is that we draw near, that we come to God fully convinced. That's the phrase I want you to land on for this let us. Full assurance of faith, be fully convinced, drawn near to God, fully convinced because of what he did for you and for me, drawn near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.

The definition of the phrase true heart that's translated true heart, it's that which is not only the name and resemblance but the real nature corresponding to the name, in every respect corresponding to the ideal signified by the name, genuine, sincere, fully convinced, near, fully convinced, opposite to what is imperfect, defective, frail, or uncertain. Our confidence or true-heartedness is completely founded on Jesus Christ having spilt His blood, you see that there, and let us draw near with a true heart and full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled like the high priest would sprinkle the altar with the blood of the sacrifice based on us being sprinkled and washed with the water, maybe pointing to Christian baptism. Let us in these things draw near confidently convinced, fully convinced that God is ready for us to come with open arms, Drawing near to him being confident of that the the second led us moving on to verse 23 The second led us here. Let's read it again Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. Let us hold fast the confession." This is what we see by example in the exhortation the writer gives us in chapter 11, chapter 11 that I think all of us probably love.

The great chapter where he goes through example after example of saints holding fast to their hope in God. For he who promised is faithful. What we confess with our mouths, we strive to live out in our actions. Chapter 11 is a list of saints that held fast to their hope in God. They drew near to God and lived in the reality that God is and that He rewards those who diligently seek him.

The things we say about God and about ourselves in relationship to him, if I would just hold fast and live out with resolve half of what I say, how, what would my life look like? If I would just hold fast and the confession of my mouth, if half of what I confessed with my mouth I would lay hold of and and live out practically day to day life would be very different wouldn't it like I know we all know more than we really practice right And maybe the last thing you need is another sermon. More information. Hold fast to the confession. Hold fast to what You say you believe he's telling us let us let us hold fast to it Not letting go of it believing with with all our might that what we know up here and say from here is true And and it And it affects the way that we live.

The point here is to take God at His Word. So let's now move into verses 24 and 25. But let me ask you a question. Do you often feel the disconnect, I've already alluded to this, between your confession and what you hold fast to? I find myself, I've already confessed that to you, that oftentimes I just Forget, let go of truths that I know were true about God and live contrary to those.

And I think this is where the third imperative, the third imperative is critical and Where I want to dig in deeper verse 24 and Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as Is the manner of some but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching? So I have I have four items that I want to draw your attention to in these verses. The first one is study one another. Study one another. The second one will be stir up one another.

The third one will be separate not from one another. And the fourth one will be spur on one another. Lifting these right out of our text. So first, study one another. Everything in these two verses, verses 24 and 25, is tied to this verb.

It's not consider, stir up, forsake not. It's not a string of primary verbs through verses 24 and 25. To consider one another is the primary verb, and it's where our attention should be focused. It's consider one another in order to. You know, some translations, if you have an ESV, even the NASB translates it like this, Let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good works." I don't like that.

You may like that, that's fine. The force and the focus of the sentence should be, in my opinion, should be on the Considering the the studying our new King James version draws our attention first to one another Rather to the act of provoking So So what does it mean if I'm sitting here telling you verses 24 and 25 are saying focus on considering one another? What does that mean? One man at men's study on Tuesday said, it's almost like meditate on each other, like we would meditate upon the Word of God, study one another, observe each other, Think about one another. As you as you interact with each other today or during the week, pay attention to demeanors and and and tones of voice.

Does the brother look tired? Does a sister look discouraged? Don't say, how you doing? I'm fine. And they look not fine and just keep moving.

Pay attention to each other. Contemplate, observe fully one another. And you should be asking yourself, Why does our author tell us to consider one another in this way to observe and and Study each other to just to think about each other leading up to the Lord's Day Like how can I come ready? To encourage a specific brother or sister because you know what's going on in their life. The application of considering one another is tied up in what I said in number two, stirring one another up.

There in our verse it says, let us consider one another in order to stir up we won't get to the love and good works just yet so number two I told you was to stir up one another This is the first object or the purpose tied to the verb to consider. To stir up, to provoke. This word is only used in one other place in the New Testament, in Acts 15 verse 39. It's actually used twice. Then the contention, there's that word provoke, became so sharp, again there it is, that they parted from one another.

And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus. The Greek word that is translated in our text, to stir up, is used in the Septuagint for the Hebrew word meaning violent, anger, and passion. So typically this word is used to provoke a negative response like anger. But he's using it here to tell us, like, like you would provoke someone to be angry with you, consider them, study them, think about what they need, who they are, what's going on in their life in order to provoke them. In order to provoke them to what?

To love and good works. It should be our intent as we gather together, not just on the Lord's Day, Wednesday nights, over breakfast, over dinner tables and lunch tables, to be Considering one another with our minds on how can I? Provoke you to love and good works How can I stir you up? And I hope many of you are asking yourselves. I'm not quite sure how to do that Michael It's it's it's not you you go around with a 50 pound sledgehammer You know just dropping it on everybody that you spend time with with rebuke, rebuke, rebuke, rebuke, rebuke.

We don't need to be, you know, one-trick ponies at this. Rebuke may be part of it. It may be comforting someone. It may be encouraging them and be telling them something they're doing good. Don't so tightly think about this text in the sense of it just needs to be wrapped up in something that's hard to say to one another.

It may be quite fun to practice this with each other, but I will tell you it will be necessary for it to be gut-wrenching to practice this sometimes with one another. And so moving on, the third point in our text, he takes, he says, let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, and then he inserts these participles, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as is the manner of some. And then he gives A contrasting comment, a contrasting participle, but exhorting one another. So we have, don't separate, that's where I got the separate not from one another, but Number four, spur one another on, exhort one another. Let's think about what he means when he says in verse 25, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.

This verb translated forsaking is it's strong. It's a strong emotional word, an abandoning or or a deserting. Basically I think our author is telling us you can't consider each other if you're not assembling with each other It's pretty I'm pretty difficult for me to know what's going on in your life if I'm not regularly meeting with you You can't consider or study each other if you're not assembling together. Listen to what the word Bible commentary says, the neglect of worship and fellowship was symptomatic of a catastrophic failure to appreciate the significance of Christ's priestly ministry and access to God it provided. The author clearly sees forsaking the assembling to meet together as a prelude to apostasy.

He tells us in, like, where does he go in verse 26? We'll get there at the very end, I hope. If I stick to my notes, we'll get there. But he goes to apostasy. The stakes could not be higher, folks, for us to practice this.

We're not playing around. He tells us that it's the manner of some, the custom, the habit of, I just, you know, I just don't, I don't need to go to church, or I don't need to come to men's study, or I don't need to go to Wednesday night prayer meeting. You know, I'll, there's lots of good preachers on YouTube, right? Or I know I'm not speaking to the crowd that believes that and thinks that, but he is telling us that some have made a habit or custom of not assembling together but you know the thing that I want to say lastly before moving on to exhorting one another and I want to say and I want to be really careful in how I say this, I don't want what I'm fixing to say to come across like I'm saying he's not talking about the corporate gathering on Sunday. He is.

It includes attentive sermon listening, fellowship meal sharing. It includes you coming to church. I grew up in a context, denominationally, where this verse, when it was preached, it was, come to church on Sunday, and not a whole lot was unpacked from that. It was like I easily thought in my mind if I came to church on Sunday, sat where you sit, and left after the service that I can check off verses 24 and 25. I grew up that way.

I grew up hearing this preach that way. So with me saying that it's more than that, I'm not saying it's not that. It's actually more than you just showing up to church on Sunday. If you come in the doors a few minutes before the service starts and you leave after the service starts, you did not obey this verse. So that's what I want to say to you Don't misunderstand me.

I'm not I love the local church. I love gathering with God's people on the Lord's Day But it's it's more than Perfunctory church attendance I'm going further than church attendance. That's an assumption that you're going to be here on the Lord's Day. Let's move on to the last portion of verses 24 and 25. Spurring one another on, the verse says, but exhorting one another.

This is another angle on stirring each other up back up in verse 20, 24. You know, exhorting, and I alluded to this, exhorting, it has a much broader application than just, you know, the one-trick pony idea of, you know, I'm the rebuker in the church or, you know, I'm just the gentle encourager, you know, the gentle encourager needs to do some rebuking and the rebuker needs to do some encouraging. It could mean entreating, pleading with a brother or sister. It could mean encouraging them, strengthening their hands, and teaching them. And then he says, and so much more.

Why do you think it's important, so much more, as the day, the day in our text alluding to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ? What does Matthew tell us? Matthew in 24 verse 12 tells us, the love of many will grow cold. Verse 13 of Matthew 24 contrasts the love growing cold as the day approaches with he who endures to the end being saved again Matthew Connecting this this together with if your love grows cold This is not You'll slip through Because he contrasted in verse 13 with the one that will be saved Again stressing the stakes are high So very quickly reviewing what we've seen so far in verses 24 and 25 study one another Stir up one another Separate not from one another and lastly spur on One another I want us now to turn to chapter 3 of Hebrews Turn to chapter 3 This is more than a cross reference and These verses we either we are further instructed on the subject today we see The author doing exactly what we're talking about The author is taking Psalm 95 there in verses 7 through 11. He's taking verses 7 through 11, you know, it's kind of confusing because it's 7 through 11 in chapter 3 and it actually is 7 through 11 in Psalm 95.

So whether you go to Psalm 95 or you're looking at it here, it's the same text. But he's taking this and he's exhorting his audience. He's taking the Word of God, and this is, I'm going to apply this at the end. I'm going to say the primary way you practice what I'm preaching, the primary way that I practice what I'm preaching is that we take up the Word of God and we apply it to each other's lives. We speak it into each other's lives.

It doesn't have to be a Bible verse quote per se. It can be. It's probably better. But We're applying truths and promises from the Word of God to one another's lives Let's read Chapter 3 verses 7 through 11 Therefore as the Holy Spirit says Today if you will hear his voice do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of trial in the wilderness where your fathers tested me, tried me, and saw my works forty years. Therefore, I was angry with that generation and said they always go astray In their heart and they have not known my ways So I swore in my wrath they shall not enter my rest So so based off this very familiar passage to his Jewish audience He he takes Psalm 95 verses 7 through 11 and he applies a warning to them.

And the warning is to beware of a poison, to beware of a poison. Look there in verse 12. Beware, brethren, lest there should be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God. We have a warning, a rebuke. He uses the word to beware.

This ideal is with an emphasis on seeing in the mind's eye, understanding, turning your thoughts, directing the mind to weigh carefully and to examine what he's fixing to say to us. The verb or the warning is it's a present imperative. It bids us to perpetual vigilance. There is no room for coasting in the Christian life, he's telling us. Beware, be on guard always, every day.

And for many of us we may be like, that sounds exhausting. It is exhausting often, but then the beauty of it is where He takes us. Like, watch out. Like, like Mike may, he may get tired and I'm standing there by his side watching for him and vice versa we're we're in this together where we're watching where we're on alert together We can't all be on the top of our game all the time, and it's when you and I are not that we need each other the most, that we need each other to come around each other and be like, brother, do you see where this is taking you, or sister, have you thought about this or that? There's no coasting.

That. There's no coasting. What exactly are we to be aware of? And he tells us, an evil heart of unbelief. This ideal of withholding belief in the divine power of God or in the promises of God, unbelief comprises the evil heart.

Unbelief comprises the evil heart. We see it again in verses 18 and 19 of the same chapter where he says they won't enter the rest. You know, the word translated obey it actually could be translated belief as well, but then he says it explicitly, so we see they could not enter in because of unbelief. It was striking to me as I studied for the sermon to think about how fundamental unbelief is in every sin that I commit. It is, I want to argue today, that unbelief in your heart and my heart is at the root of every sin that besets you.

Unbelief is the most comprehensive description of the sins of the wilderness generation. Unbelief leads to all sorts of things it it led to them coming up to the promised land and saying I Don't believe that you can take those guys and and they perished Unbelief is at the the root of our sin If you if you you know, why do you lust? Why are you greedy? Why why do you covet? Why do you do X Y and Z?

I'm saying that if you, you know, lift the hood up or peel back the layers, you're going to get down to the bottom of it, and it's because of unbelief. That's why I think our author says in verse 12, beware, and he tells you what to beware of, of an evil heart of unbelief. Unbelief springs from the heart but becomes real in concrete acts of refusal to trust God. The author envisions no faith that does not lead to obedience, nor does he conceive of any obedience that does not stem from faith." And Listen to this. This come out of one of the commentaries.

I didn't put down which one. He writes, the hostility faced by his hearers from unbelieving society precludes the hypocrisy bred when faith is popular in Christ. The hostility faced by his hearers from unbelieving society precludes the hypocrisy bred when faith in Christ is popular. We could contrast that and what we see in verse 12, this unbelief of this group that refused to come into the promised land with that group in chapter 11, that group in chapter 11 who identified with the eternal city and their heavenly homeland. How were they able to do that?

What's the chapter about? Faith. They believed God that He was and that He would do what He said He would do. And they, what was it, what did chapter 11 say about them? They were people who the world was not worthy of.

Unbelief leads to apostasy. Unbelief it says in verse 12 leads to departing from the living God. If we refuse to live by faith in God's power and Anticipation of his promises we will be no better off than people who have turned away from the living God to worship dead idols. So how do we wage war on this unbelief? How do we avoid what the consequences of this unbelief would be that's here in chapter 3 and also forward in chapter 10 that we looked at a few minutes ago.

The antidote that he gives us in verse 13, what's the antidote to the poison of unbelief? To exhort one another, to exhort one another daily while it is called today. The letter, the letter itself is an example of the author practicing what he is preaching. I told you already that at the end of the letter in chapter 13, he refers to this as a word of exhortation. He's doing that for us right here, and it's a mixture of promises and warnings.

It's qualified by doing it daily. How often? Daily, not once a week on Sunday. That's, you know, part of why I made the comment about this, what I'm talking to you about in chapter 10 and here in chapter 3. It's explicit in chapter 3 because he says daily.

We don't go to church every day, But even in chapter 10, don't forsake the assembling, but it's all within the context not of the preacher exhorting, it's you two exhorting each other. Like chapter 10 can't be fulfilled in total by you sitting there listening to a good sermon. And he makes that explicit to us in telling us that we must exhort one another daily. The how-to of addressing the evil heart of unbelief is to flip the discouragement. What did the ten spies do, kids?

You know the story? The spies went in. What did they come back and what did they come back and say come on kids somebody they can't they can't take it they're too big they're big and strong and our God is just teeny weeny you're laughing it's it's insanity isn't it so we we need to flip that up on its head and say, like Caleb and Joshua, what did they say? We can do it. I don't care how big they are.

I don't care how strong they are. I don't care how many there are. God told us to do it, and we're going to do it. This is how we wage war on the sin of unbelief in each other's lives. Otherwise if we don't, what does the text say?

We're going to be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, Hardening by repeated failure to trust and to obey You know sin deceives by offering something is more valuable more certain and easily obtained than God's promises the the wilderness generation allowed their focus to turn from the living God to to being overwhelmed by the power they saw in the Canaanites and They said it's better for us that we we go back to Egypt and not press forward The deceptive power of sin It's deceptive, isn't it? Like who here is ready to take it on by yourself it will master you Sin is crouching. What did he say? He said sin can't enable sin is at your door waiting Without the power of the Holy Spirit in your life and your brother and sister Standing arm in arm with you. It will Master you Translations it will whip you it will have it will have rain over you every single time This is not an excuse To be like, oh well, you know oftentimes in in settings of practicing this It's it's more of a a pity party for each other I'm thinking specifically of the setting for men and accountability meetings.

And you just sit around and, you know, oh, me too. What was me? This is not the deceptive power of sin. It's not an excuse for disobedience, but it should be translated as an urgent call for vigilant resistance. So let's conclude and make some applications.

So do you understand and feel the weight of responsibility that you have towards one another as members of the body of Christ and to an even greater degree as covenant members toward each other. Look around at each other. Go ahead, look at each other. Look who's sitting beside you. Some of you are stubborn, some of you are looking around, but look each other in the eye and contemplate the weight of responsibility that you have towards one another.

I want you to I want you to understand and to feel your responsibility towards each other. To what? To have a good day? What's the weight and responsibility that we should feel? It's that so your love won't grow cold.

I asked my kids at the table, I said to a child that's professed, I said, what hope do you have that your love won't grow cold? And I want to couch this, and I don't want us to walk away from the sermons being a bunch of anxious, nobody's got any confidence and assurance of salvation, but what do we do with the book of Hebrews? The book of Hebrews has some very strong language about warning, about falling away. It's got some knots in it that I wouldn't attempt to untie, like tasting of, I forget where it's at, but it's got some really complicated things in thinking about, well, wait a minute, where's assurance of salvation? So it's this tension that we've got to live with.

We've got to have confidence back to 1024 that I can boldly go in to the holiest, mixed with, don't grow cold, brother. Beware. Like, what confidence do you have that you're going to make it? The confidence is you wake up tomorrow and you still believe. One day at a time, you keep believing.

You keep fixing your eyes on the Lord Jesus Christ and marching forward. The thought struck me this morning. Are we hyper-Calvinist when it comes to our view of sanctification and our neighbor's sanctification? You know the idea of being a hyper-Calvinist in regards to evangelism, and we just sit around and we don't do anything because God's going to save them? You know what I'm talking about?

Have you thought about it, connecting it to your sanctification? Meaning, like, Paul's going to make it. He's got it. I don't need to do anything. Wrong.

You do need to do things. We're commanded to do things. We need to stop, you know, I think to a large degree the hyper-Calvinism relationship to evangelism missions, I don't see that as being a challenge that we're facing, but this is a challenge I think we're facing. One where we need to own up to our responsibility for one another, for one another's sanctification. Not that I'm sanctifying you.

The same grace that justified is the grace that's going to sanctify you and carry you forward, but I've got a responsibility. God does have means, right? What's the means of justification and salvation? It's the preaching of the Word of God, the means of sanctification. There are many, but one of the primary ones is me coming in close and personal in your life.

We've seen in verses 24 and 25 of chapter 10 that we fulfill the responsibility by studying one another, by stirring up one another, not separating from one another, but spurring on one another. And then we learned in chapter 3 verses 12 and 13 that every single day of our lives we have to apply the antidote, exhorting, to the poison of unbelief last unbelief Overwhelm us and lead us away from the living God and closing I have Three applications. I may just do two of them for the sake of time. Are you alone? Men, do you have at least one other man that's in every bit of your business?

Women, do you have at least one? That's a minimum. Women, do you have at least one? That's a minimum. Women, do you have at least one other woman that's in all your business?

There's not one rock that's unturned in your life. There's no secrets. They're aware of your struggles today. I'm not saying you meet somebody and you don't have this and so you just you dredge up just a bunch of mess from the past. Maybe some of that needs to be brought to bear, but I'm talking about today what's going on and how can they draw near to you and hold you accountable to all sorts of areas of your life.

I pray that at Hope, Baptist, and at Sovereign or Deemer that the Lone Ranger Christian dies. May Lone Ranger Christianity not have a place in our midst. And guess what? The Lone Ranger Christian is in danger of perishing. That's what our text says.

Says it both in chapter 3 and it says it in chapter 10 that if you're not engaged in this kind of community life, you're in danger of apostasy. I want to read these quickly. Preaching alone, this is under the, you know, the first application. Preaching alone is not enough. Before you burn me at the stake, can you agree with me on this statement?

This one anotherness that I'm talking about today, it must partner with the preaching of the Word of God. It's both. It's not just preaching or just one anotherness. Like forget preaching, let's just have small groups. It's not that.

I'm saying it's...small groups, if that's a loaded word for you, like I'm talking about just find a few folks that you're really, really close with. Find a few folks that are in all of your business. Here are some experiential reasons why preaching alone, why you can't fulfill obedience to chapter 10 by just coming to church. The impulse to disappear in the crowd is strong. The tendency towards passivity and listening is strong.

Listeners in a big group can evade redemptive crises. Listeners in a large group tend to neglect efforts of personal application. Opportunity for questions leading to growth is missing. Accountability for follow-through on good resolve is missing. Prayer support for a specific need or conviction or resolve goes wanting.

Those are experiential reasons why this, it's not enough. There's got to be this plus over lunch in a few minutes. You're getting intimate with one another in your conversations and what's going on in your life. And the second point of application and the last one, the primary way that we exhort one another, the primary way that we come alongside one another is we wield the weapon of the Word of God. This must be our primary means of exhorting one another.

Why? Because at the center of the war, what's at the center of the war? Unbelief. How do we wage war on unbelief faith? What what feeds faith what what gives life to faith?

It's the Word of God wage war on unbelief in each other's lives Wielding the Word of God. Let's pray Oh Father Help us Father the stakes could not be higher Oh, I pray that these brethren would think on one another and would be blood-earnest in being in one another's lives, Practicing what they've heard today what they've seen plainly and clearly in your word a clear command of our responsibility towards one another. Oh, and for the joy of it, Lord, the fruit of it, give us courage, give us boldness, pour out your love within our hearts that we would practice these things so often it's it's I love myself too much that I don't do this so help us put to death the love of self that we would reach across the table in conversation That we would draw near to a brother and sister Lord, we desperately need one another Convince us of that by the power of your Holy Spirit In Jesus' name, amen.