If salvation is by grace alone, and not by works, why does the author to the Hebrews say ‘let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest’ (Heb 4:11)? What does he mean to work really hard in order to get into heaven?
In order to understand v. 11 we must first grasp the author’s overall message in this passage, which is as follows:
- Step 1: Let us ‘be careful’ (lit. be afraid) of not entering God’s rest (4:1)
- Step 2: The way we enter God’s rest (heaven) is through trusting God, for sin and unbelief are what stop one from entering (4:2)
- Step 3: To trust God we must listen to the gospel (4:2). If we haven’t had the gospel preached to us, how are we able to trust the gospel.
- Step 4: We must ‘make every effort’ (4:11) to listen to the gospel.
So, the way to enter heaven is to work really hard at listening to the gospel, which tells us to rest in the work Jesus has done for us on the cross. In other words, we need to work really hard at resting.
When nominal Christians (i.e. those who profess to being Christian, but haven’t really given their lives to Jesus) hear this, there is no urgency. When real Christians hear this, they automatically ask ‘what more can I be doing to work hard at resting (in the gospel)?’ The answer is, continue to build the most intimate relationship with God, through Jesus Christ, that I can.
This happens through things like (i) being at church every Sunday, unless I’m away or have COVID, (ii) setting aside specific time for God each day, (iii) continue to preach the gospel to yourself, (iv) find things to praise God for each day, (v) read Christian books, commentaries and devotionals, and (vi) be a person of prayer. Let us work really hard … at resting.
