If Christmas is pagan, should Christians be involved?

Will you become an over-comer, by grace through faith, or will you become a complainer? Exodus generation had more evidence of God’s care and power than any other generation, and yet they complained at every turn, and they tested God. Heb 3:7-11 Psa 95:7-11 In any temptation, there is a test, there is a divine solution to overcome it. The Exodus generation decided to test God to see if He was good. Any believer who refuses to remember the faithfulness of God is doing the same thing. “Why would God let this happen to me?” You only see works after the fact. You see His ways ahead of time, before the work comes. Psa 103:7 Knowing His ways means to know the Person. It’s more than academic understanding. The information needs to lead us from the written Word to the Living Word, and a deeper experiential knowledge of Him. How well do we know experientially Jesus Christ? How deep do we know His character? Seven steps of Exodus generation, and 70AD generation 1. process of hardening - Heb 3:8, Heb 3:12, Heb 3:15 We become accountable to what we hear in the Word 2. rebellion - Heb 3:15 3. great loss of His rest - Heb 3:11 you can lose everything, but the only security there is is a rest built on trusting God 4. lives of no profit - Heb 4:2 They saw no profit because they did not act in faith Gal 5:2 5. dull of hearing - Heb 5:11 it became a burden to hear the Word of God 6. stunted spiritual life - Heb 5:12 spiritually stunted and immature 7.they run the danger of no return - Heb 6:1-6 The more we know Him, the more we see how much we have lost of opportunities and tests Exo 17:1-7 Rephidim was meant to be a place of rest because of God’s faithfulness They tested God by complaining, finding fault with His plan. In every deliverance, there is a picture of Christ’s work on the cross. Heb 5:11 Num 20:1-13 There is no rest for anyone who doesn’t believe God. Getting along with others is one of the hardest things you can do, and it takes a lot of forgiveness. A home is a measure of how much that family knows His mercy. Psa 103:1-22 Rom 12:1-3 How merciful are we to others is a measure of how well we know of God’s mercy. Eph 4:32 If we can pass the test of being merciful, we will go leagues in deepening and understanding the ways of Jesus Christ. It is so easy to judge others. Phi 2:3-11 When someone in your presence becomes a test to you, get in God’s presence. Moses failed because he knew God’s ways, and was angry that they didn’t. 1co 10:4 1co 10:9 Heb 11:26 Isa 53:1-12 To strike the Rock again, to crucify Christ again, instead of speaking to the Rock. Speak to the Rock and rest. 1Pe 5:6-7 Heb 4:16 Our boldness is because of Christ’s mercy, because of who He is, we can speak confidently before Him, knowing that He hears, and can lift our burdens, that He is near. We can be care-free because He cares for us.

Scripture References: Hebrews 3:15, Hebrews 5:12, Romans 12:1-3, Hebrews 3:12, Hebrews 5:11, Psalms 103:1-22, Hebrews 3:8, Hebrews 4:16, Galatians 5:2, Numbers 20:1-13, Psalms 103:7, Isaiah 53:1-12, Hebrews 4:2, Hebrews 5:11, Psalms 95:7-11, Hebrews 11:26, Hebrews 3:11, Exodus 17:1-7, Hebrews 3:7-11, Philippians 2:3-11, Hebrews 3:15, Hebrews 6:1-6, Ephesians 4:32

From Series: Hebrews (1998) | More Messages from Gene Cunningham | Download Audio