July 29, 2014

GOD'S PROMISE AND HIS OATH ARE AN ANCHOR FOR OUR SOULS!

Hebrews 6:13–20

Justin Smith
Tuesday's Devo

July 29, 2014

Tuesday's Devo

July 29, 2014

Central Truth

God wants us to trust in His sovereign control and to be completely confident about how our future will turn out. That is why He gave a promise and an oath, sworn by Himself, and sealed in the finished work of Christ.

Key Verse | Hebrews 6:18

[S]o that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. (Hebrews 6:18)

Hebrews 6:13–20

The Certainty of God's Promise

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15 And thus Abraham, 1 6:15 Greek he having patiently waited, obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

Footnotes

[1] 6:15 Greek he

Dive Deeper | Hebrews 6:13–20

For me, God is always trying to reveal a central core belief about His character. In this season of life, He is teaching me about His sovereign nature. In a fallen world, this is difficult to understand because it means we have to trust that God's will for us is good. Trusting in Him answers the question, "Does He have complete control over my life -- or better yet -- do I want Him to? This section of Scripture unwraps that.

When the author references God's promise that He will surely bless and multiply Abraham, God means both blessing in time and ultimate blessing, which is eternity with God, found only through His Son. The Scripture says God "Interposed" this promise with an oath. The promise and the oath are meant to give us confidence that we will inherit all that He promises us in Jesus. Verse 18 provides that encouragement. To stress the validity of or end a dispute, people often swear by one greater than themselves, "I swear on . . . ." God does this here, swearing on Himself and signifying that He binds His Word to His character, both of which are unchangeable.

So if you believe in Jesus, then it is easy to find comfort in a promise and even more so from an oath, sworn by the only perfect and true character of God. This truth is such an encouragement. By faith in Christ, we hold fast to our hope of something greater. God's promise and His oath are the assurance we need to know that our future is firmly planted in His hand! As verse 19 points out, this hope is an anchor for our soul. Holding onto this anchor is evidence of our faith, not a cause of it.

So believing that God's Word is truth and that His sworn promise is good, we can be encouraged that the sealed blood of Christ is an anchor for our soul in the hope of an eternal future! In a season when God is teaching His complete control, what an amazing lesson it is to learn that He promises, with an oath, eternal hope in Jesus!

Discussion Questions

1. Can you give an example of a time you swore by something greater than yourself to solidify a point?

2. What if God made the same statement? Would you trust that it is true?

3. Do you trust that God's Word, the Scripture, is truth?

4. Can you give some examples of how an anchor holds something secure?

5. Is Jesus an anchor for your faith? If yes, have you surrendered complete control of your life to Him? If no, what is holding you back?