Introduction

Hebrews Chapter 4 is a pain in my heart because I did not understand it the last time I studied the Bible. This time, I encountered it again, and I still couldn't understand it no matter how I read it or what methods I used. However, there is a characteristic in me, which is never to compromise and never to give up. This characteristic is my greatest asset. It doesn't matter if I don't understand it. The key is that I know what I know and what I don't know. Today, everyone must start to be shrewd. Being shrewd means knowing what we know and what we don't know.

For example, with renovations, if you don't do it right, even if there is space for the bed and sofa, the room still looks awkward. If something is done right, it looks pleasing and comfortable no matter how you look at it. Comfort is a very good and important feeling. Everyone wants to be comfortable, but when I didn't get this chapter of the Bible right, I felt uncomfortable, restless, and not comfortable at all. But today I want to tell you that I understand this chapter of the Bible. The theme of this chapter is: God will be your ever-present help.

The theme of Hebrews Chapter 1 is: the sonship of God; the theme of Chapter 2 is: the noble salvation should not be ignored; the theme of Chapter 3 is: to build the temple of God, we must be faithful to the end; the theme of Chapter 4 is: God will be your ever-present help. Why do we say that God will be your ever-present help? Because this will produce wonderful things, which is that you begin to work with God, and working with God is a state of rest.

The word rest causes a lot of confusion. For example, when I was a child, when people said rest in peace! it was said to the dead. Now, in Christian circles, many people say that rest is relaxation. In fact, rest is not relaxation, and the purpose of rest is not to stop the work we have done, because the Sabbath in the Old Testament is to worship God.

Believe or Not?

How do we explain that God will be your ever-present help? It speaks of belief or unbelief, hardening your heart or having an open heart. Why do we say that knowing where I don't know is a kind of intelligence? Because my heart is not hardened. I have seen many people who harden their hearts, insisting that they are right even when things are not done correctly, and stubbornly trying to prove that they are right.

Brothers and sisters, you must know that the Christian faith can truly bring us into God's ever-present help. But many people do not see God as their ever-present help. Why is this? Because they do not believe in their hearts! They sit in church on Sundays, but their minds are occupied with their work and business. How can they have time to rest?

I have written so much to tell you that when reading Hebrews Chapter 4, I was able to strive diligently. In fact, it doesn't matter if we don't understand something. Believe in God, and God will help you. It didn't matter that I didn't understand it the last time I studied Hebrews. Knowing God is a lifelong task, and we must strive diligently, and God will help us.

Thank God! This time, when I studied Hebrews Chapter 4, I understood it. The Christian faith is a faith of striving diligently. I often encounter Christians like this: I have believed in the Lord, I am saved, and I will go to heaven after I die... But they live their lives as they always have, and I really don't see a state of striving diligently in them.

If brothers and sisters read Hebrews, they will find that it is a state of striving diligently. Because of such a precious salvation, such a good sonship, and then we enter into union with God, I become that gemstone in the temple, becoming a material for building the temple. How can we become a treasure? It is to truly believe and truly pursue! Brothers and sisters, examine yourselves to see if you are a person who strives diligently to know God, and do not deceive yourselves. Knowing God is endless.

Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. (Hebrews 4:1)

The author writes here to explain that there is a group of people who are running hard, and some people seem to be falling behind.

For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed. (Hebrews 4:2)

They refers to those who seem to be falling behind. Some people fall behind because they are unwilling to strive diligently. The author of Hebrews is a person who strives diligently, and he also encourages brothers and sisters to strive diligently. When some brothers and sisters seem to be falling behind, he wrote Hebrews Chapter 4, lest any of us seem to be falling behind.

When people have an unbelieving heart, they have no way to transform the word of God into energy within us. There must be some among us who seem to be falling behind. I will use these words to encourage you. We really must strive diligently to obtain the title of son, to obtain this great salvation, and then strive to build God's church.

Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.' And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world. (Hebrews 4:3)

We who believe are actually in a state of rest in the process of striving diligently. Those who do not strive diligently cannot enter into rest. Because they do not believe that God is their ever-present help. If people treat money and work as God, God cannot help you. If you truly strive diligently to seek God, we will enter into union with God.

I know God in my heart, and I truly regard God as my lifelong pursuit. I am very clear that in this life, I will not rely on anyone except God. There are five siblings in my family serving my mother. If my mother is really bedridden, it will be very hard. But I really thank God! Because I love God, and I strive diligently to serve my God, God miraculously healed my mother when she was on the verge of death. This is all due to prayer. My mother used to rest three times every 100 meters, but now she can walk 1,000 meters without resting once.

Our God is truly a treasure, the result of my lifelong pursuit. What ability or capital do you have to guarantee that you will not decline when you are old? What will you use to resist the diseases of old age? Especially in today's small families. My mother has five children, and she is still qualified to rely on her children for old age. Our generation has only one child. I must choose to trust in God, and I will enter God's rest. So I will never stop worshiping my God in my life. That is why I have never missed a single Sunday service or a single small group Bible study for so many years. I have a character of striving diligently to seek God, and I will strive diligently for what I have identified.

Brothers and sisters, never rely on others. In fact, you are very clear about whether you have strived diligently. If you don't know, then you have not strived diligently. Those who do not strive diligently will never enter my rest. The author repeats this in the third and fifth verses. They shall never enter my rest. Why can't they enter? Because those who previously heard the gospel did not believe, and therefore did not enter.

Unbelief is a very deadly thing. Without belief, there is no striving diligently. People will not do what they think is wrong. People will only do what they think is right. As for whether that thing is right or wrong, only God knows. If you strive diligently for your work, you cannot guarantee anything. Many people hear the gospel, but they do not believe, and they cannot enter that rest, and they have no way to enter God's presence. They also do not want to establish a relationship with God, and they do not want to build God's house and God's church. They only live for themselves. How can they get rest? Because they do not believe.

Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it “Today,” saying through David, as in the passage already quoted: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. (Hebrews 4:7-11)

Our Faith is a Faith of Striving Diligently

Brothers and sisters, you must begin to understand that our Christian faith is a faith of striving diligently. If you strive diligently, your faith is true faith, and God will be your ever-present help. If you are not a person who strives diligently, you may be the one who seems to be falling behind; and if you follow the example of disobedience, you will fall. I encourage each of our brothers and sisters not to try to be careless among us. Careless people cannot survive in our church. Therefore, brothers and sisters must strive diligently to enter that rest.

If you are unwilling to give up the work you are doing, you are mistaken, and you have got the order wrong. The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The purpose of the Sabbath being made for man is for man to be edified. To put down the work in your hands on the Sabbath is God's most wonderful design. Put down the work in your hands, because on the Sabbath, you must walk with God, be with God, and strive to know God. With God's help, nothing will collapse. Don't feel that something is over if you put something down on Sunday. That's not the case.

You must know everything. You must either strive diligently or retreat. If you want to strive diligently, you will surely please God, and God will surely be your ever-present help. Even if you put down your work, God will not let your work collapse. Did you hear clearly? If you have heard clearly, you can think about it yourself. We study the Bible on Wednesdays and Fridays, and we have meetings and prayer services on Sundays, as well as healing and deliverance courses, speaking ministries, etc. Have you delayed anything? You have not delayed anything.

Because Jesus is your ever-present help, and you have put things down, nothing has collapsed. What else are you afraid of? Because our God will not cause the things in your hands to collapse. This is so well said here:

Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. (Hebrews 4:11)

Today, brothers and sisters, you must know that no matter what level you are at, you may be at a very, very high spiritual level, but at this level, if you want to retreat, you will surely perish. Let us turn to Hebrews Chapter 10:

But my righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back. But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved. (Hebrews 10:38-39)

Let us not retreat, or think that we can just stay like this forever. Rick Joyner's The Final Quest talks about some people who stop at that position, but they cannot stop there forever. Our faith is a faith of striving diligently. People must strive diligently throughout their lives, and must not retreat and perish. Today, we recall Lot's wife, who turned into a pillar of salt when she looked back while running forward. Brothers and sisters, do you want to perish? Do you still want to hold on to the fence and look back?

The Israelites entered the wilderness. Going forward was the land of Canaan, and going backward was returning to Egypt as slaves, but if you wanted to return to Egypt as slaves, God did not give you this way. If you want to return to Egypt as slaves, that is a dead end, and God will strike you down in the wilderness. That is to say, we Christians have been forced to a dead end. You have no other path to choose. There is only one path you can choose, which is to claim God's promise by faith, and let God be your ever-present help, because all things are possible for those who believe.

Knowing What You Don't Know

Striving diligently is a crucial character trait for a Christian throughout their life. Why strive diligently? Because there is much we do not know. Thank God, I am a person who strives diligently. I know what I do not know, and I know what I need to strive diligently for, so I am constantly exploring. In these past years, after believing in the Lord at the local church, there were many things inside me that were not right.

At that time, I was ignorant and wanted to establish my own church, but I do not regret it to this day. Because I wanted to pursue the truth, at that time, I didn't know what pastoring was, what faith was, what kind of church to establish, or how to establish it. Thank God! Because I have a heart that strives diligently, God has led me onto a path of striving diligently.

Now, I can clearly explain what pastoring is and how to establish a church. It is because I constantly read God's word, and I didn't read God's word as clearly as I do now. Like examining Hebrews chapter 4, it didn't matter if I didn't understand it before. Unlike others, I don't give up when things don't work out. Seeing that I am not good enough, I strive diligently, knowing that my God will surely be my ever-present help. If the last Bible study wasn't clear, then keep running forward. When I study Hebrews chapter 4 again, wow, I finally understand it!

It turns out that our faith is a faith of striving diligently. In the process of striving diligently to know God, God will surely let you see. To those who knock, the door will be opened; those who seek will find, because our God has been waiting for you there for a long time. I know how good our God is, I know what abundant glory our God has, I know how honorable the name of God's son is, and I know that building God's temple is our life's Mingding Destiny!

Entering into Jesus Christ, we build God's temple, obtain the name of God's son, obtain great salvation, obtain abundant glory, which is to let us strive diligently, and then God is pleased with us. God is pleased with us and becomes our ever-present help. Even if we have weaknesses, it doesn't matter, because our God will surely lead us into rest.

Rest is a very enjoyable state. I thank God from the bottom of my heart because God called me and allowed me to enjoy everything I do in this world. When I am studying, I enjoy studying; when I don't want to study, I tell myself that I want to enjoy studying. When working, I enjoy working, enjoying the hard work. Because I know that whether I enjoy it or not, I still have to do it, so why not enjoy it? If I am not interested in something, I turn it into my interest. It is God who changed me because I have a heart that strives diligently. When I did not yet know God, God already knew me. When I was willing to strive diligently for the meaning of life, God let me see that He is the meaning of my life.

When I have gained Jesus Christ as the most precious treasure, being a pastor is a very enjoyable thing. Many pastors tell me that it is a difficult and arduous task. If something is not right, it is uncomfortable because they do not know, but they think they know. If a person knows what they do not know and does not strive diligently, it is very foolish. Of course, if you do not know, but you think you know, it is also very foolish.

Living is very simple, isn't it just trusting in God? So, serving anyone is first building up their faith. Even if they have mountain-sized difficulties, I must build them up with faith, and then the mountain becomes a small stone. Faith is a treasure! God will become our ever-present help. People are the most important, work is not important, your edification is the most important.

I say to the leaders, you are the most important in my eyes, and the work you do is only for your edification. I asked someone to write a resume, and they wrote it day after day, but they wouldn't show it to me. When I asked, they said: I don't think you'll be satisfied. If I were satisfied, you wouldn't need to show it to me. I know you are not good enough, and then you don't seek help, you will be stuck there, you will be in pain.

So at any time, I know that God is my ever-present help, and I trust Him for the rest of my life. I will strive diligently for the rest of my life because I always feel that I do not know our God enough and have not experienced enough. God did not let me keep the Sabbath for the sake of the Sabbath, God let me keep the Sabbath for my edification. The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. How much God loves us, He has established the Sabbath for us. We can know that work is not the most important. Work can be put down, but striving diligently for God cannot be put down; work can be put down because work is never finished.

Once, I took a course that was really tough. Someone below told me that their pastor taught them this way. They asked: Pastor, if I am busy with work, should I come to the gathering or continue working? Then their pastor's answer was: Then you have to continue working. Why continue working? Work is also worshiping God. I thought, my goodness, what kind of talk is this? Our brothers and sisters must know that if you put down your work and worship God properly, and then go back and do your work properly, your work will definitely become better.

Today, Christians need to know for sure that we are not competing with others for how much time we put into work. If eight hours a day is not enough, then ten hours, if ten hours is not enough, then twelve hours, if twelve hours is not enough, then sixteen hours. Will that solve the problem? Work is never finished. What should we compete for today? We do sixteen hours of work in eight hours, wouldn't that be competitive? Isn't it? If you rely on God as your ever-present help every day, I tell you, you will enjoy your work every day, and you will also become a very efficient person, because you have grasped the essence of working.

So brothers and sisters, you really have to learn to walk with God. If you learn to walk with God, you will enjoy everything you do. If you don't enjoy it, you are a person who does not walk with God. Walking with God means you are a person with the image of God. God sees everything as good, and we also see everything as good, so that we can do everything in enjoyment. Isn't this what Ecclesiastes says? A person's life is vanity of vanities, but there is one thing that is not so vain, and that is enjoying your labor. When you begin to be able to enjoy your labor, you begin to have the image of God on you.

Do Not Be Presumptuous

As we brothers and sisters read on, you will find that the author is targeting some people, targeting those who play false.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 4:12-13)

This is a very strong statement. So why does the author say this here? Because those people do not believe, or it seems that they are about to miss out. There is a problem with their thoughts and intentions. The problem in their thoughts and intentions is that they want to play false. They often say: I believe! But... but I will not believe like you. I believe, I also come to church to attend gatherings, and I also keep the Sabbath.

Those Israelites in the days of Joshua also kept the Sabbath, but in the end, they did not get rest. Joshua said: You cannot serve this God. They said: We must serve. Joshua said: You cannot serve. They said: We will serve. Why? Because they are hardened in their hearts. They are presumptuous. They keep their faith in religious form, but that is not faith.

We do these things because we believe. They do them with hardened hearts without believing. How painful is that? Their minds are full of business and work. They sit in church listening to the sermon, but they don't hear anything. They don't do their work either. Alas, the day is wasted. What is this sermon about? I don't know. I don't have time to listen, I don't have the mood to listen, but I have to stay there. Don't you think that's painful? Don't think our God doesn't know. How can such people draw on God's promises? How can such people get God's ever-present help? What they do lives in a curse.

So brothers and sisters, do not play false with God. If you play false with God, you want to let go but you can't, and you have to let go, and you struggle there. Will that work? God knows. Do not be presumptuous. The Holy Spirit helps our weaknesses. The word of God is living. Do not play false with God.

If the word of God is living and can discern everything, and everything is naked and exposed, I ask you, does your work efficiency have an answer in God's presence? Yes, it does. Does your creativity have an answer in God's presence? Our God is the God of creation. Do these things of mathematics, physics, and chemistry have answers in God's presence? Yes, they do. In today's high-tech world, do these semiconductor researches have answers in God's presence? Yes, they do. Because God wants to be our ever-present help.

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, today the creativity within you, God will open it up, for that is an outward result of rest. A person who walks with God will surely be a creative person.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:14-15)

So brothers and sisters, we must know that Jesus is the same as us, not different. Some say Jesus is the Son of God, I am not. Then you believe you are not. Today He is the same as us, only He did not fall, He did not retreat, He went forward without hesitation, until He was nailed to the cross. In His eyes, although I am weak, I still trust in God. He has set an example for us.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

Do you understand? Who are you lacking? Is it not God? It is not that God lacks you, it is that we lack God. We need God, to receive mercy and find grace in God's presence, to receive His ever-present help. Let us not retreat, saying that everyone is weak, so I retreat. The Bible says, If you shrink back, my soul has no pleasure in you. Let us not be those who shrink back and are destroyed. Today, after hearing my sharing, begin to be strong and run diligently, and even in this empty life, live out God's glory! God will surely be our ever-present help, Amen!