Exalted by Hope

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15 And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

Prayer

Back in chapter 5, the author of Hebrews introduced us to a view of Jesus we don’t often think about - Christ is our high priest. Specifically, the author wants to discuss Jesus’ priesthood in terms of another priest - Melchizedek.

But he can’t talk about that yet - his readers aren’t ready. They are dull of hearing, so he warns them of the dangers of apostasy, ensuring that they hear his heart for them. He shows them how their lives have proved to him the genuineness of their faith, and encourages them to continue in that faith, growing to maturity.

Having given this warning, he wants to ensure that they have a firm basis of hope. Look at verse 19:

Hebrews 6:19 ESV

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

This morning, I am convinced that Jesus is minimized in some people’s hearts because they lack this kind of hope. The author of Hebrews wants your hope and my hope to be “a sure and steadfast anchor” for our souls.

We Can Put Hope in Christ That Brings Us Ultimate Security

That’s the kind of hope that maximizes Christ and exalts our Great King. So I want us to see some characteristics of this kind of hope. First:

Our Hope Is Valid, Modeled by Abraham’s Patience

We don’t see the word “valid” as much these days, but we know what something that is “valid” is - it’s something that is allowed or permitted. But the word means more than that. It also means something that holds up to scrutiny.

A valid hope is able to stand the test. In Hebrews 6:19, the word used is “steadfast:”

Hebrews 6:19 ESV

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

Another idea that might help is the idea of something firmly established. It need not be debated or questioned because it is widely regarded as true. When we put hope in Christ, we don’t have to “hope against all odds.” That’s not biblical hope. Biblical hope is certain. We know this hope is valid.

But how do we know with such certainty? How can we hope with such conviction without fear of being wrong or mistaken? Because we are not the first to put hope in God. Consider the story of Abraham:

Hebrews 6:13–15 ESV

God made a promise to Abraham (before his name was even Abraham) that he would give this man a multitude of descendants that could not be counted. Now, that might not seem like much of a promise, but it was an incredible promise. Abraham would be in his eighties before having a son out of wedlock, and he would turn 100 by the time the promised son Isaac was born.

Talk about “having patiently waited!” Abraham put his hope in God. Even though he did mess up, he still trusted God to make good on his promise. And God did.

It’s that kind of hope that magnifies Jesus Christ. When we hope in Christ, we do not take matters into our own hands. Abraham tried that, by the way, and it failed. But when he trusted in God, Abraham found God to be trust-worthy.

We can discover the same truth as we hope in Jesus. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He does not require us to be intellectual or good-looking or have an outgoing personality. He does not require us to hold many awards or accolades. He does not require us to prove our faith by putting great sums of money into the plate (though all these things can be good things to do). He calls us to trust him. And when we trust him, patiently and obediently waiting for his work, Jesus is all the while being glorified. We lift high our Jesus as we patiently hold this valid hope.

Another characteristic of a hope that exalts Christ:

Our Hope Is Solid, Guaranteed by God’s Promises

Look back at verse 19:

Hebrews 6:19 ESV

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

The word “sure” in verse 19 is a solid word. It has the idea of something you can rely on.

If you’ve ever seen an anchor, you know they are very heavy. And the bigger the boat, the heavier the anchor needs to be. I went on a fishing trip on a small boat, and the anchor was a lot heavier than I thought it would be. I tried to pick it up and I was not ready for the mass. Even the smallest anchors weigh 2 pounds.

But 2 pounds doesn’t cut it for a bigger ship. Malcolm Manning was a Navy man. The anchor on those battleships, and especially aircraft carriers, weigh a lot more, don’t they? Last time we went to the Battleship Park in Mobile, we took a picture of the kids on top of a battleship anchor. It was not just 2 pounds! It didn’t move at all!

If you’re going sailing, you need a solid anchor. Our hope in Christ is a solid anchor - it is sure enough to keep our ship of faith from drifting away from Christ. How is it so solid? The iron that makes this hope is the very promises of God:

Hebrews 6:16–18 ESV

16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

God makes promises. When people make promises, that doesn’t mean much. We try to be people of our word: we promise to do something, but sometimes we are unable to keep our promises. Some people give no value whatsoever to keeping their promises, and others specifically use promises to deceive.

So when you want to make sure that a promise will be kept, you go a step further. In our day, that would be signing a contract. In their day, the contract would be verbal - they would make an oath. When you make an oath, you’re calling on all the hearers to hold you to it. You’ve basically signed your name on the dotted line, and now you’ve got to uphold your end of the bargain.

God wants you to have complete confidence in his promises. There’s no need for God to make an oath - he doesn’t go back on his promises. But he is willing to do whatever it takes to give us complete confidence in him. So he sometimes swears an oath. Of course, there’s no one to swear to for God except himself. Maybe that’s why, in Psalm 110, he says:

Psalm 110:4 ESV

4 The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”

When God told Abraham to sacrifice that son of promise, Isaac, Abraham was obedient. Listen to God’s words through his angel:

Genesis 22:16 ESV

16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,

God makes promises, and God always makes good on those promises. We have a solid hope because the iron of his promises is always sure, and the anchor is full of that iron. It’s not hollow - God’s promises are chocked full of certainty. When we have hope in Christ, we can be sure that our anchor will hold us close to him. God has promised. He will do it.

Numbers 23:19 ESV

19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

Our sure and steadfast anchor is our hope in Christ, validated and solidified by God’s faithfulness to keep his promises. When your hope is that firm and that secure, you can’t help but exalt Christ!

There’s one more characteristic of this Jesus-honoring hope:

Our Hope Is Holy, Sanctified by Christ’s Atonement

We’ve dealt with the first half of verse 19. Let’s look more closely at the second half, and how the sentence ends in verse 20:

Hebrews 6:19–20 ESV

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

In the days of the temple, only the High Priest could go behind the veil, and only once a year on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). He did not go before the people went - he went in the place of the people. He was their representative before God.

But when Christ goes in, he doesn’t just go in the earthly temple. He goes into the true Holiest place - the throne room of God. And he doesn’t go merely to represent us: he goes to prepare a place for us. He goes as our forerunner, making a path for us to follow him into the presence of the Father.

So our hope in Christ leads us into God’s presence. It follows Jesus into God’s heavenly abode. Now, in order to do that, something has to happen. We cannot go into God’s presence with sin. And we’re all sinners. Sinners do not simply walk into God’s presence!

That’s where Christ steps in. By going before us, Christ made atonement before the Father on our behalf. He cleanses us from the sin that kept us away from God. The whole reason for the veil in the temple was to keep sin out of God’s presence. Now that Christ has dealt with our sin and we have trusted him for forgiveness of sins, we have a hope with access to the Father 24/7/365! Christ sanctifies us, and our hope in him.

That means we now can come before the throne of grace with boldness, knowing that God will hear our prayers and work within us. What an amazing hope we have in Christ!

That holy, solid, valid hope just keeps lifting high the name above every name. So what are we waiting for, church? Why do we keep trusting ourselves when we have a sure and steadfast anchor in Christ? Why do we rely on our own shaky, unsure pebbles and sticks? Why do we insist on leaning on our own understanding, trusting in our own paths that seem right but lead to destruction, and relying on our own righteousness that is nothing but filthy rags? Our hope is valid - known to be true. Our hope is solid - fit to secure us. Our hope is holy - made pure by Christ’s sacrifice. Is your hope a worthy anchor for your soul?

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