Hold Fast by Drawing Near
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We come this morning to what I consider to be a cornerstone passage in Scripture...
A passage worthy of memorization and worthy of regular meditation...
So, if you would please… open up to Hebrews 4:14-16.
This passage concludes the argument started by the author back in chapter 3 v. 1… Heb 3.1 where he tells us to consider the apostle and high priest of our confession… (Don’t read)
1 Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession,
The verses that followed explained how there is a rest for us to enter and how we ought to strive to enter that rest for… as the author tells us in Heb 4.12-13… the Word of God is living and active… knowing the thoughts and intentions of men and women… and as such all of us are exposed… naked… before God… to whom we must give account...
And then the author brings us to our passage that is before us this morning… v. 14-16…
Heb 4.14-16 doesn’t only conclude the author’s of argument started back in chapter 3… it also serves to transition us to the main argument of the epistle found in Heb 5.1-10:18… which is don’t forsake our high priest, Jesus… specifically, don’t forsake the Melchizedikian priesthood for the Levitical priesthood…
One saves and the other doesn’t… the main section of the letter can be broken up into two smaller parts...
In Heb 5.1-7.28 the author will focus on the Son’s appointment as high priest
And then in Heb 8.3-10.18 he will focus on the Son’s offering being superior in heaven
Heb 8:1-2, which sits between the two sections actually give us the main point of the epistle
1 Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2 a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man.
But we are not there… not yet...
So, without further ado, let us read these three verses at the end of chapter 4...
And then we’ll look at why we ought to hold fast to our confession
Followed by the how of it… which is by drawing near to the throne of grace..
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
We have two exhortations in this passage… and the first one is found at the end of our first verse, v. 14...
Hold Fast to Our Confession
Before we talk about why we are to hold fast to our confession… let’s identify our confession…
This language hearkens us back to the start of chapter 3 as mentioned before… and the confession there is the same as it is here...
Our confession is our faith… in what we profess in regard to the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross...
So, why is the author calling us to hold fast to our confession here?
Consider the context… consider what the author mentioned right before this in v. 12-13… and even the verses before that which spoke of a rest remaining for those who are faithful...
Since we must strive to enter the promised Sabbath Rest… and since we are all exposed and naked before God in Heaven, to whom we must give account...
Let us hold fast to our confession…
And the author highlights three main reasons why we ought to… two are found in v. 14, and the third is found in v. 15...
We are to hold fast to our confession for we have a great high priest...
Not just any priest… not just a high priest… but a great high priest
One who is merciful and faithful… truly merciful… and truly faithful… Heb 2.17
17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
No other priest is like Him… He is truly great… and He is our high priest… perfectly faithful to us as He is perfectly faithful to God…
And unlike other priests before Him… His work is finished… He has accomplished it… thus why the author back in the prologue was able to write Heb 1.3
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Jesus being the “great” high priest will be the author’s main focus point going forward… why He is superior and better than all who came before and all who come after...
Here though in our text, the author does focus on a key aspect of the priesthood of Jesus… the location of it...
We have a high priest who has passed through the heavens
Now, when the author speaks of heavens… he does not mean that there are multiple heavens...
This is an expression to describe the skies… both the blue day time sky and the starry night sky… that is Jesus has passed through to the place where God dwells… beyond this realm...
Now, why is this significant?
It brings to mind two things...
First, that Jesus… and note, that every time the author wants to bring to mind the humanity of the Son… he calls Him by His name, Jesus...
First, the author wants us to understand where Jesus is… and to recall why He is there...
Mentioning His ascension is equivalent to mentioning His exaltation… of which he has mentioned multiple times already...
So, not only do we have a high priest… but we have one who has been exalted… for as Paul says in Eph 4.10
10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)
Second, mentioning the ascension of Jesus… reminds us of where He is…
He is the One who is currently living in the flesh… in the very presence of God...
Remember Acts 1:9
9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
That’s a physical ascension into the very presence of God… more specifically the right hand of God, as the author stated in Heb 1.3, and as Luke records Jesus saying during his trial in Luke 22.69
69 But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”
Therefore, since He is there and we are here....
And we must give account to the One whom He sits next to… and He is the appointed priest by God to do so…
Shouldn’t we hold fast to Him?
Shouldn’t it be Him we cling? We go to in time of need?
Who else can better intercede for us on our behalf?
What other man or woman can do such a thing for us?
There is only one reference check we want when we go before God… and that’s His Son, our apostle and our high priest of our confession… Jesus Christ.
So, let’s make sure we hold to Him… but in order to be sure we do…
We must not add or take away anything from our confession...
For the author and his audience, it was the temptation to trust in the Levitical code… in the old ways… in the old covenant...
For us today it can be that… or it can be other things...
Trusting in the pope, or some other fallible priest to absolve your sin…
Whether by confession to them..
Or by partaking of the sacraments..
Paying penance… or thinking your children will pay their fair amount of indulgences to help you out of purgatory...
Or by saying certain prayers a certain number of times...
Perhaps we trust too much in our baptism...
Or our tithes… or our own pastors… maybe we think as long as they have a good word about us before God… we’ll be alright...
Sorry… I don’t carry that kind of weight… no man, except one does… Jesus...
5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
If we are to give an account to God… wouldn’t we want to be near the One who sits next to Him? Right now… at this very moment?
So, why are we so quick to put so many things between us and Him?
Because we’re selfish… and evil...
We want to have a say… we want some control… some tangible means by which we can take credit...
And we think we do well by wanting to take charge...
But in doing so, we are essentially seeking some of His glory… anytime we attempt to do something that leads us to think we can say, “I did such and such, therefore I know I’m saved”...
Is a selfish and unbelieving act...
For the one who has died to self… the one who believes… has no need to look at anything… nor desires to do so… for the Christ and His work is enough… He gets all the glory…
So, when someone asks how do you know you’re saved… we tell them because of Christ..
We tell them we trust in Him, in His work, in His promises… and that whatever good we do… whatever righteous fruit we produce… it’s His… He’s done it… we’re mere vessels… mere instruments..
We must resist the urge for something tangible… it is through faith by grace we are saved… not by works. Well intended or otherwise...
Beyond the location of our great high priest… the author gives us another reason why we ought to hold fast to our confession found in v. 15… let’s read it again Heb 4.15
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
Our high priest sympathizes with us… but before we dive into that truth more… I want to address the end of v. 15 first...
There seems to be a growing chorus within the American church.... that Jesus Himself had to repent of sins… we must refute such blasphemy..
Scripture is clear that Christ was without sin...
The thief on the cross in Lk 23.40-41
40 But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.”
Jesus in Jn 7.18
18 The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.
Again Jn 8.46
46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?
30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.
Paul in 2 Cor 5.21
21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Peter in 1 Peter 1.19
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.
Again in 1 Peter 2.22
22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.
And again 1 Peter 3.18
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,
And of course, John in his epistle 1 Jn 3.5
5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.
Now, let us consider what it means that He sympathizes with our weaknesses...
He is not some distant impersonal deity...
Nor is He an unloving uninvolved God
Rather He sympathizes with our weaknesses...
That is, Jesus is intimately familiar with the temptations and sufferings of human experience...
He knows the struggle it is for the people of God to remain faithful and how hard it is for us to not to sin...
He knows what it is like to be hungry, tired, alone, isolated, scorned, rejected.... and yet, in and through all of that… remain faithful…
He knows what it is like to be tempted by the devil himself...
He knows what it is like to suffer injustice… for Jesus, being the Son of God… being without sin, is the only man in all of history who did not deserve death or any form of suffering...
Yet, He did… He willfully chose to… and though in the midst of it all He experienced great anguished… He remained faithful...
Though He prayed a prayer of blood and sweat… and His resistance to fall into temptation led to His death… He remained faithful...
He knows your moment of temptation...
He knows what it’s like to hear the devil say, “Did God really say?”...
Or the urge to test God or to seek out what you believe you are entitled to...
He knows what it’s like to lose a loved one… for even He, the Creator of All Things… and He, who is the Resurrection and the Life… He wept over death
He knows your pain… your struggle… and it is why He so desperately sought to leave this world so He could send the Comforter… the Holy Spirit to be with us… to be withIN us...
For by Him we are able to cry out “Abba, Father” in our time of need...
And what a joy! What a privilege that we have such a priest!
But what does it matter? Why is this such joy? The truth that Jesus is our great high priest in the heavens who is able to sympathize with us is not great simply because there’s at least one person who is able to relate… or there is at least one person who thinks of us...
Why does this matter that He can sympathize?
Next verse… let’s read it again Heb 4.16
16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
This is the second exhortation in our passage… that is...
We are to draw near to the throne of Grace...
The throne of grace is where God sits and dispenses His grace to His people… it’s an expression… to represent the intimate access we have to the Father who dwells in heaven...
Access that in the Levitical code only the fallible high priest had access to… in part… but now… because of the work of our Great High Priest Jesus… we have access… and not in part… but in full..
And where the priests of old could only enter into the Holy of Holies at certain time under certain conditions...
We are able to enter into His presence continually… and as needed...
But the author does not intend for us to come and go from the throne of grace…
Rather he is exhorting us to remain near the throne of grace…
Let’s consider how we are to draw near… than we’ll look at why we are to draw near
We are to draw near to the throne of grace with confidence/boldness...
We are not to draw near by engaging in some new age mystical experience...
We do not draw near by going on a walkabout.. or sitting in a sweat lodge until we have a vision...
Nor is our approach attained by smoking particular herbs or embarking on a vision quest awaiting for nature to speak...
No… it is with confidence… we approach.. and what is our confidence exactly?
Recall Heb 3.6
6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.
Christ, our paragon of faith… He is our confidence… our hope..
And in our immediate context… our priest… our great high priest… He is our confidence...
He is our boast...
We come before the Father not because we have washed ourselves...
Or because we have loved others so well...
Or because we have given up so much...
We come before the Father… not on the basis or merit of anything that pertains to you and I… but only by the merit of the Son… of our priest… who offered Himself up for our sin… to grant us access to the Father...
No permission needed from me… the denomination… or from some self-proclaimed apostle… or from the wayward pope...
And why should we desire to draw near to the throne of grace?
So that we may receive mercy and help…
It is at the throne of grace we receive the mercy we need… not elsewhere...
Mercy is only found by our confidence… by our confession and our hope...
When we believe and trust Christ in all things…
When He is the supreme affection of our heart…
For He is the One who has made a way to the throne of grace...
He is the One… who has given us access to Father...
And why do we need this mercy? And why do we need to find grace?
Haven’t we already been saved? Justified? Delivered?
Yes, but we must remain faithful to the end… we must persevere… and in order to do so we will need help from God above...
And the time to enter the throne of grace is not when we need help… though we may certainly do so if we have so unfaithfully tarried… the time to approach the throne of grace is now!
And to stay there! So that… when the time comes… when we need the help… we will have it…
Jesus does not serve as our high priest and king only in time of need… only when we mess up… but all the time...
And we need Him all the time… for we do not desire, if we are faithful, to sin period… we want the help before it’s too late… we want the help so we don’t have to seek forgiveness… again… and again...
But it’s not only with sins of commission… that is doing a thing that sinful...
But we need help with the sins of omission.. that is when we refuse or neglect to do what we ought to do...
For example, we need this help when we struggle to read His Word...
We need it when we serve the body...
But we can only receive that help if we are near to Him who gives it…
So, how do we do that...
Paul speaks to this in Rom 8… v. 26 Ro 8.26
26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
We must be a people that pray… not once in a while...
But continually, 1 Th 5.17
17 pray without ceasing,
And we must abide in Him… we must remain in Him… Jn 15.7-10
7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.
We must be a people who pray… who know and keep His Word…
And we must be a people who do so with humility…the last part of Isaiah 66.2
2 All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.
We must not go to Him in prayer or to His Word with a sense of entitlement or a sense of pride… but one of humility...
Knowing… feeling the weight of our sin… of our inadequacies… but remembering His Word about those who hold fast to the faith… Rom 8.1
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
And again Rom 8.30
30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
So, we are able to come to Him… into His presence… with confidence… and with joy… despite our sin and shame… despite our failings and inadequacies… all of which are true about us...
But that’s ok… for in our weaknesses He is glorified… when He is our boast...
And He certainly is… let us pray as we prepare ourselves to come to His Table...