“See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven.” (Hebrews 12:25 NASB1995)
In context, the one who warned them on earth was Moses. He warned the Israelites who had escaped slavery in Egypt, but who were wandering in the wilderness, against living in idolatry, adultery, immorality, drunkenness, revelry, grumbling against God, putting God to the test, craving evil things, and disobedience to God and to his commandments. But most of them did not listen, and they continued in their sins, and so God put them to death, and they did not get to enter his eternal rest because of their disobedience.
The things that they did in rebellion against God happened as examples for us, and they were written down for our instruction, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. And we are warned in the Scriptures to not be like them, and to not commit the same kinds of sins which they did, and which they refused to repent of, which brought about their deaths and their eternal separation from God. And we are told that if we hear God’s voice, we must not harden our hearts as they did in disobedience to God.
For, under the Old Covenant or the New Covenant, we must not walk in sin and in disobedience to our Lord or we, as well, will not enter into God’s eternal rest, i.e. we will not inherit eternal life with God. And all throughout the New Testament we are warned against disobedience to God and making sin our practice, that if we do that, we will not have salvation from sin, and we will not enter into the kingdom of heaven. For we can’t just call Jesus “Lord,” but we need to be doing (obeying) what he commands us to do.
And God is now using them as an example to us to not be like them or we will face the same result. He is the voice warning us from heaven. And he is showing us that if we do what they did that we will suffer the same punishment that they did, too. For unbelief is not just a failure to acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord. Disobedience to God and to his commands is unbelief. And faith in Jesus Christ is obedience to our Lord in dying to sin and now living to God, doing what is pleasing to God.
But all of this comes from God, and is not generated in our own human flesh. Our faith comes from God, it is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded of God as to his righteousness and holiness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to die to sin and to obey our Lord and his commandments, by the grace of God, and in the power of God, according to the will of God for our lives. Not one of us can be saved from our sins via our own human effort, but faith in Jesus requires death to sin and obeying God.
So please understand here that our salvation from sin and eternal life with God are not promised to us based upon a profession of faith in Jesus Christ only. God warns us in the Scriptures many times over that if we continue in deliberate and habitual sin, and if obedience to our Lord’s commands is not what we practice, that we will face the same punishment as the Israelites in the wilderness who ignored God’s warnings. We will die in our sins, and we will not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. Please believe it!
[1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 12:1-2,18-29; Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 10:19-39; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
Recording Via Gerry Peters, music producer and arranger
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
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Do Not Refuse Him
An Original Work / November 27, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
