Originally preached in September 2020.

This passage comes in the greater context of understanding who God is, who you are, and what your attitude toward the Lord should be. James teaches that one with a true and living faith will have two defining attitudes toward the Lord. First, they will be humble before the Lord. And secondly, they will recognize their frailty and the power of God. These attitudes of the heart will produce the action of acknowledging God in all your ways.

Feelings are not facts, and emotions often obscure the truth. However, this does not negate the seriousness of feelings and the dramatic impact emotions have on how you see the world. God created you with emotions; however, because of the fall and the corruption of this world, emotions can be destructive and deceptive. Psalm 13 is a psalm of David that deals with his feelings of spiritual abandonment. David feels like God has forgotten him, refused to respond to him, and left him to be shamed by his enemies. David feels abandoned.

Psalm 13 is written in three stanzas. Stanza one contains David's despondent questions, which flow from his fear of God's abandonment. Stanza two is David's prayer for God to see him and answer his pleas. Stanza three is a response of faith in God's goodness. Psalm 13 teaches three ways to respond when you are struggling with feelings of abandonment.

The desire and will of God is for you to be in right relationship with Him and be in His presence. The testimony of this is that God has provided the way for the defiled to be made holy and those separated from Him by sin to draw near in confidence through the offering of His son, Jesus Christ.

The offering of Jesus reveals God's will, which calls for a response of faith. This passage teaches three responses to the offering of Jesus that God expects of you.

Some tasks are restricted from you because of a lack of ability. Other tasks are restricted from you because of a lack of qualification or authority. The pride of sin produces the lie that your own efforts can achieve righteousness. The arrogance of sin can convince you that you do not need Jesus. However, the testimony of scripture is that you can never achieve righteousness before God through your own efforts. Salvation comes only through the work of God. Jesus is the perfect high priest who, through His life, death, and resurrection provides forgiveness of sin and access to God to all who believe in faith. 

Hebrews 7 teaches three ways that Jesus, as the perfect son of God, provides for salvation.

Show Notes: Reflections on Advent and the Book of Hebrews

Episode Highlights:

Christmas Greetings from Pastor Ben: Warm wishes for a blessed Christmas and 2025.

Advent Sermons from Hebrews: Pastor Ben shares his thoughts on the Advent season, focusing on Jesus in the book of Hebrews:

The Glorious Son: Hebrews Chapter 1.

The Faithful Son: Hebrews Chapter 3.

The Perfect Son: Hebrews Chapter 7.

The Will of God: Hebrews Chapter 10.

Podcast Schedule Update: Upcoming episodes of “Ben Smith, All for the Kingdom” will be released on Mondays due to the holiday schedule.

Call to Action: Listeners are encouraged to support the podcast by subscribing, rating, reviewing, and sharing it to help spread the message.

Gratitude and Acknowledgments: Special thanks to Central Baptist Church in Waycross, Georgia, for their support and to listeners for their continued attention.

Closing Note: Pastor Ben wishes everyone a joyful Christmas.

It is possible to be near the gospel and miss salvation. It is possible to have some knowledge of the gospel and not believe it. It is possible to be close to salivation and not be saved. Proximity does not equal possession.

Beyond making a comparison between Moses and Jesus, Hebrews 3 warns that it is not enough to simply know who Jesus is. Like the people that Moses led, there will be many who miss out on receiving the salvation of Jesus. Those whom Moses led out of Egypt were witnesses to God's great and glorious power but did not have faith and thus did not receive the blessing of the promised land. Likewise, many today have heard the gospel but have not believed in faith and thus have not received the promise of salvation.

God has used many things to reveal himself to man and testify to his glory, but these things must not distract you from the glory of Jesus Christ. We are people who are easily distracted. The first chapter of Hebrews identifies some of the good things God has used to reveal himself to man, testify to his glory, and accomplish his will. God used these good things to point to his glory, but they are not and never have been equal to his glory. The danger and warning of this chapter is becoming distracted by these things and missing what they testify to. 

With such a propensity to be distracted, how can you keep your heart and mind focused on the glory of Jesus Christ? To keep you from disastrous distractions, this passage calls you to recognize the glorious supremacy of Christ in three areas.

Psalm 95 is about how and why you must worship. The psalm calls believers to worship and warns against disobedience. Christians must worship God wholeheartedly in response to who He is and in obedience to His word. Psalm 95 teaches three ways you are to worship.

In a day when words are used to confuse, distort, manipulate, and misdirect, hope is found in the eternal, never-changing word of God and His faithfulness to keep His word to every generation.

The foundation of the Christian faith is that God is truth, and the Bible is His inspired inerrant word. Every believer is called to believe in faith and stand firm in God's truth. Psalm 12 teaches three requirements for standing firm in God's truth.

In this closing greeting from Paul to Titus, we get a glimpse into the efforts of first-century saints to carry out the gospel mission in their churches and around the globe. Some were traveling to preach the gospel and teach sound doctrine. To support these efforts, the churches generously offered what they had. Paul, his fellow laborers, and the churches were doing all they could to advance the kingdom of God.

United in faith, every member of the church must use every resource God has provided to advance the kingdom of God. Every saint must ask, How can I be a useful servant of God in advancing His kingdom? These closing words teach three ways the church is effective for kingdom advancement.