Unity Series — Faith, Obedience, and Entering God’s Rest
Unity Series — Faith, Obedience, and Entering God’s Rest
Foundations of Unity
I’ve been spending time in the New Testament book of Hebrews lately. I usually begin in my old New American Standard Bible—the one my wife gave me before we were married, almost forty-one years ago. Maybe that’s why I love this version so much. It carries history. It carries love.
But every now and then, I come across a verse that makes me pause and ask, “Why did they translate it that way?” When that happens, I turn to the Ultimate Bible Study Suite on my Kindle for deeper study.
Recently, the end of Hebrews 3 stopped me in my tracks.
A Translation Difference That Matters
Here is how the NASB reads:
Hebrews 3:18–19 (NASB)
18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?
19 So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.
But the King James Version reads:
Hebrews 3:18–19 (KJV)
18 And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?
19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.
Why does one translation say disobedient, while the other says believed not, when both verses describe the same people?
So I looked up the Greek words:
Verse 18 — apeitheō
to disbelieve (willfully), to refuse, to be unpersuaded; disobedient, unbelieving
Verse 19 — apistia
faithlessness, unbelief, unfaithfulness; disobedience
And suddenly it clicked:
In God’s eyes, sin, disobedience, and unbelief are not three different things. They are one thing.
I knew this before—but I didn’t truly know it until I went deeper.
Unbelief is not merely doubting. It is refusing to trust God. It is the root of disobedience. It is the heart of sin.
And Hebrews makes the consequences painfully clear:
Unbelief keeps a person from entering God’s rest.
“Today, if you hear His voice…”
Hebrews 3:6–14 (NASB)
Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts…
Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.
But encourage one another day after day… so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.
The message is simple and strong:
• Unbelief hardens the heart.
• Sin deceives.
• Disobedience flows from unbelief.
• Faith—real faith—holds fast until the end.
This is the foundation of unity with God: trusting Him enough to obey Him.
One Last Thought: God Orchestrates
I once tried to describe what God does in our lives and stumbled across the word orchestrate—to arrange or combine so as to achieve a desired or maximum effect.
I love that.
God is not eager to punish. He is eager to orchestrate our lives toward faith, toward trust, toward rest.
He arranges. He guides. He works. He calls. He helps.
Always toward the same goal:
That we would believe Him—and enter His rest.
Closing Prayer:
Father God, thank You for Your Word that reveals both truth and grace. Teach us to trust You completely—to believe even when we cannot see, and to obey even when it costs us comfort. Soften our hearts where unbelief has taken root, and lead us into Your rest. May our lives be orchestrated by Your Spirit, tuned to Your will, and filled with faith that endures. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
