Pursue Peace With Everyone And Holiness—Without It No One Will See The Lord
Hebrews 12:14-17 Christian Standard Bible
14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord. 15 Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and defiling many. 16 And make sure that there isn’t any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for a single meal. 17 For you know that later, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, even though he sought it with tears, because he didn’t find any opportunity for repentance.
What does it mean to pursue peace with everyone? The word pursue here is the Greek word diṓkō and it means to impel, follow zealously[1]. The pursue something is to chase after it with all of our might. Here we are not only commanded to pursue peace with everyone, but also holiness. The word holiness is the Greek word hagiasmos and it means sanctification, holiness, consecration. Refers either to the process of becoming holy, by which the state of holiness is attained, or to the end result that the sanctifying work has obtained.[2] We only become holy and are sanctified as we pursue Jesus Christ and abide in Him. If we shrink back from our pursuit and relationship with Christ because of temptation, lies, deception, or the threat of suffering or persecution we are cutting ourselves off from the one place where holiness can be developed within us.
The writer of Hebrews under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit says to pursue holiness and without it no one will see the Lord. In America we have cheapened biblical faith because often we try to build God’s kingdom like we would a business. We try to market a message that appeals to people with the hope that they will visit and become invested. Sadly, many times the message is compromised, because for the most part the call of Jesus to deny oneself and pick up one’s cross does not appeal to the American appetite. But it is important for us to remember that Jesus himself said that those who love me will obey my commands. It doesn’t mean that unless we are perfect, we are not going to enter into the kingdom of Heaven. But a real result of a thriving relationship with Jesus Christ is holiness being produced in our lives. Holiness is simply the fruit of the Holy Spirit being cultivated and it can only be cultivated as we abide with Jesus Christ daily.
Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and defiling many. What does it mean to fall short of the grace of God? The phrase fall short means to be later, to be inferior; gen. to fall short (be deficient):—come behind (short), be destitute, fail, lack, suffer need, (be in) want, be the worse.[3] If we have fallen short it means we have abandoned faith in Jesus Christ. The only way we can receive and have access to the grace of God is through faith in Jesus Christ. But throughout the book of Hebrews, we see real warnings to believers about falling away and abandoning Jesus Christ.
The suffering and hardships we face in this life because of our walk with Christ may cause us to become bitter and desire to abandon Christ to elevate suffering. But will abandoning Jesus really make things easier? The answer is no. Without Jesus life is meaningless and empty. There is nothing in this world that compares to knowing Jesus Christ. Even if we are called to suffer in great ways for the name of Christ, the grace of God is sufficient to see us through. Nothing about following Jesus is meant to be comfortable. Following Jesus at times is simply hard. Paul tells us that he dies daily. Our flesh must be crucified. The daily decision to follow Christ can only be accomplished by fully relying upon the grace of Almighty God. It is the Holy Spirit who will enable us to accomplish that which God has called us to as we simply trust Him one day at a time.
And make sure that there isn’t any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for a single meal. Every account of a person’s life we have in the bible is meant to teach us something about God and about following Him. The word of God is living and active. As we study the bible and meditate upon the truth of God’s word, we are supernaturally transformed by the work and person of the Holy Spirit. Who was Esau? Esau was the older brother of Jacob. What we find as we study the book of Genesis is that Esau by his own choice sold his birth rite for a bowl of stew (Genesis 25:29-34). By this action it showed that Esau didn’t value the birth rite at all but only saw it as something that could be easily discarded. Why did he sell it? Because his mind was simply fixed on the here and now. The writer of Hebrews is trying to drive a point home to those that would consider abandoning Jesus for comfort here and now.
The word immoral is the Greek word pŏrnŏs, por´-nos; and means a (male) prostitute (as venal), i.e. (by anal.) a debauchee (libertine):—fornicator, whoremonger[4]. It is a person who by their actions are against God and His ways. In this life we only have two choices, we can live for God and surrender to His will, or we can be our own god, chase after the passions and lust of the world and in the end simply find destruction. The word irrevant is the Greek word bébēlos and it means profane. Esau was both immoral and irreverent because he despised his birth rite. He despised something that was a gift from Almighty God that he didn’t deserve or didn’t earn. When God saw Esau in his mother’s womb, He knew that this man would despise his birth rite for a bowl of stew.
We are only saved by the grace of God because it requires God to offer to us salvation. It is impossible for a spiritual dead person to come to the knowledge of Jesus Christ without The Spirit of God first drawing that person and working in their heart. But we still have a freewill. We still have a responsibility to pursue Jesus Christ and abide in Him. Christianity only works is if we are daily committed to Jesus Christ. We can’t do this on our own and if we fail to abide in Christ the sad result is that we will destroy the purposes and plans God has for us. Over and over the Lord is calling us to draw near regardless of what we will face for following Him. He is the one who will carry us, and He is the one who will accomplish His purposes through us.
For you know that later, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, even though he sought it with tears, because he didn’t find any opportunity for repentance. Esau abandoned his breath rite for a bowl of stew. I mean sit back and really think about that. He threw away his future and destiny to satisfy his present need and comfort. The question is how does this relate to those the writer of Hebrews was writing to? How does this apply to our own lives? Are we willing to abandon Jesus for comfort? Are we willing to abandon Jesus for earthly comfort? Sadly, in this generation so many have lived and worshipped at the idol and feet of comfort. It has lulled them to sleep spiritually.
We also see later when Esau wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected. There is a real warning here to not play games with God and not to play games with His grace. Yes, we are saved by the grace of God. God has made the way possible for all of us to be saved. But we have a free will. We have a personal responsibility to hold fast to the Lord and His promises. Esau even sought it with tears, but he didn’t find any opportunity for repentance. Were the tears because his heart was broken over abandoning his birth rite, or was his heart broken because he missed out on the blessing. I truly believe it was the latter.
Esau was focused on his wants and desires. He had no regard for the Lord or His ways. It is important for us to be committed to holiness and righteousness. To daily seek the Lord and draw near to Him. Repentance is only provided by God’s grace. It is God who enables men and women to come to repentance. So, when the truth of God’s word comes forth, and the conviction of The Holy Spirit is drawing and knocking on our heart, may we heed the voice and leading of The Lord and respond in obedience. May we not justify our sin. May we not be tempted to abandon Jesus Christ for temporary comfort or earthly desires.
Prayer
Father thank you for loving us. Thank you for your word and your direction. Help us on a daily basis to pursue peace, holiness, and righteousness. Help us to live for you. Father remove from our lives anything that grieves you or is against your word. Daily examine our hearts and minds and we pursuit you and your kingdom with all that is within us. In the mighty name of Jesus, Amen!
[1] Gerhard Kittel, Gerhard Friedrich, and Geoffrey William Bromiley, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans, 1985), 177.
[2] Hon-Lee Kwok, “Holiness,” ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Theological Wordbook, Lexham Bible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).
[3] James Strong, A Concise Dictionary of the Words in the Greek Testament and The Hebrew Bible (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009), 75.
[4] James Strong, A Concise Dictionary of the Words in the Greek Testament and The Hebrew Bible (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009), 59.
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