At the Throne of Grace Together

Opening prayer, dedication

Music ministry

The Blessing (short)

507 Through It All

How Marvelous

Word of God -

Hebrews 4:14-16

Sermon "At the Throne of Grace Together"

We finished last week talking about the rest we all need

We learned that when we Rest in Christ, then we have the other forms of rest all covered

We also learned that without Christ, there is no real rest

I want to begin with the last verse from our core text last week

Hebrews 4:13 ESV

13 And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

It was not that many years ago that cameras were not EVERYWHERE

Some employees, including our own, really hated the idea that they might be watched

Of course everyone said “I have nothing to hide”

But the idea of being potentially watched all the time was stressful

All any employer can do is fire you

Of course, we all know that

“Character is what you demonstrate when you THINK no one is watching”

Just imagine the stress when we process that God IS always watching and we KNOW that we are doing things less than perfectly

How could we possibly “rest” like that, right?

The answer is found in God’s grace

God is not watching for us to fail

God is watching us out of love and wants us to trust His grace

That’s who our Jesus is!

That’s why we can gather and be at rest with Him

That’s why we can be confident as we continue our journey toward “The Throne of Grace Together”

Which is where the title for the message comes from today

We really are on a journey together

If I was telling you about this awesome trip, and I was trying to get you to join me

What would you want to know?

Where were we going

When were we going and for how long

How would we be traveling

How much would it cost

And what every kid, even the older ones, wants to know “Who is going “

Parents would also want to know who the chaperones were

Maybe for the adult too

We would want to know who was organizing AND who would be leading, right?

I wouldn’t want to go on a long trip with a person in charge who

I didn’t trust to be organized

or whose character was in conflict with biblical principles

Here, we are on a journey of faith until the day God calls each of us home

More specifically, we are on a part of that journey where we approach Easter 2022

Don’t worry about the character or pedigree of our ultimate trip organizer because His name is Jesus

And Jesus assigned the Holy Spirit as our tour guide

The Holy Spirit will guide us in the way to go

What to do and what not to do

And the Holy Spirit will work hard to keep you from missing the bus as it goes on its way

What exactly is the destination for this leg of our journey

It’s “The Throne of Grace” -

Let’s head there together, shall we?

Don’t take my word for it about pedigree, it was at the beginning of our core text today, Hebrews 4:14

Hebrews 4:14 ESV

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.

This is a great confirmation of what we studied in Ephesians 4:10

Ephesians 4:10 ESV

10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)

Perfect for this season of preparation

As we get ready to celebrate resurrection Sunday

We get to talk about what Jesus went through before the crucifixion

It comes to us in this reference to “passing through the heavens”

In the Old Testament church, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest would pass through three areas to make the atoning sacrifice

The Outer court

The Holy Place

and the Holy of Holies

Jesus passed through the three heavens after making the His sacrifice in atonement for ALL our sins

The atmospheric heaven, where birds fly and clouds are

The stellar heaven, where the planets and stars are

and God’s abode (where God is seated)

What exactly do we mean by “heaven”?

The word in Greek was “Ouranos”

Lexham Theological Wordbook οὐρανός

(ouranos). n. masc. sky. The portion of creation that is distinct from earth.

So, “heaven” is essentially everything created that isn’t on earth

And Scripture generally refers to the heavens as being in layers

2 Corinthians 12:2–3 ESV

2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—

In order to come alongside us and become our High Priest, Jesus journeyed through ALL three heavens

If you ever feel down and like you aren’t worth anything

Just remember that Jesus traveled a long way and endured tremendous troubles to save you

Even if you closed the door on Him at first, He still wants into your life

Knowing the long journey, and the power He holds

Surely we can agree that Jesus is worthy of more than an occasional tip of time or thought

This journey was for a purpose

That purpose was and is to show us the way to salvation

So, God in Heaven is not expecting Jesus to return from that journey empty-handed

Here’s the point of the heavenly comparison

When Jesus returned to the heavenly Holy of Holies, having completed our redemption

The theoretical or facsimile of heaven got replaced by the reality of heaven

What was only a dream, that we gentiles could spend all eternity with God in heave,

That became a very real option

Jesus demonstrated His desire for us to follow Him to heaven

and Jesus demonstrated His power through His resurrection

Therefore, we should be able to “hold fast” to our faith in Jesus

Takeaways

Hold Fast to Faith in Jesus

Our Faith in Jesus requires that we boldly PROFESS our faith in Jesus

“hold fast to our confession” means that we are to not waiver,

We are to be strong as we are vocal proponents or advocates for our faith in Jesus

There is no room for lukewarm or wishy-washy faith

Jesus came far too far, did far too much and suffered far too much for us to be anything other than bold!

Takeaways

Hold Fast to Faith in Jesus

Jesus knows our struggles

One of the most spectacular things Jesus did was to choose to leave the highest heaven to come to walk with us

By coming alongside us and becoming human for a time

Jesus was fulfilling a requirement for high priesthood

Recall from Hebrews 2:17-18

Hebrews 2:17–18 ESV

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. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Jesus came alongside us and became “LIKE” us

That we may know that Jesus understands our struggles

That we may know we are not alone

That even Jesus faced temptation

That even Jesus felt physical and emotional pain

That we are NEVER alone in our discomfort and pain

We really must focus for a moment on “weakness”.

Verse 15 says that Jesus can sympathize with our weakness (Isaiah 53:3)

Isaiah 53:3 ESV

3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Jesus knows first-hand what it’s like to not only “feel” despised ,

but to actually be despised

Even despised by His own people

So, if you feel down, looked down upon,

Jesus knows how you feel

You are NOT alone, nor am I

We are, in fact, on this journey of life together

Together with each other

and Together with Jesus

Our final takeaway

Takeaways

Hold Fast to Faith in Jesus

Jesus knows our struggles

Go to the Throne of Grace Together

I love having a destination, a final location in mind for any trip

While I am one of those who don’t need or even like to have every turn mapped out

I enjoy the side-trips

I even enjoy chasing a rabbit or two along the way

The best trips though, are those where the destination is exciting

You just can’t wait to get there

But being able to enjoy the side trips and deviations that life brings along the way makes those trips even better

When you can see a sign advertising two-headed snakes and you just HAVE to go see it

Or, that young lady struggling to change a flat tire and you are able to bless her with help

Or that waitress who was struggling and needed a friendly ear and extra tip

All given as opportunities to shine the light of Christ and introduce people to the Kingdom of God

Now we are talking about a EPIC trip!

To bring the message a little closer to home

As Believers in Christ, we all have a destination of Heaven

Eventually we want to be in the third Heaven

We will have loved ones who have already gone before us

and there will be those who follow us

We will have crisis after crisis along our journey

financial

emotional

spiritual

medical

Whether it’s us who get sick or our loved ones

We will have disappointments

and we will disappoint others

But, whether we have sinned against someone else, or our sins against God

God knows our sins and the brokenness that is our heart

Holy Brothers and Sisters in Christ, God does NOT give us what we deserve

God gives us grace to cover the space between what we do and what is needed from us

Through God’s grace and mercy we are accepted, purified and redeemed

We are not strong on our own, but strong through Christ

When Paul was talking about the thorn in his side which made Paul weak, Paul tells us this is what Jesus said to him,

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV

9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Our individual and collective weaknesses are opportunities for God’s power to shine

All by God’s grace and mercy

I closed the message last week with this statement which is made even more clearly today:

“we enter God’s Rest together when we fully accept and extend God’s grace together”

First we enter God’s Grace,

by accepting and extending His grace to others

That brings us together with each other AND God

And it is then that we are truly able to be at the Throne of God’s grace TOGETHER

a united body of Christ for ever and ever

AMEN

Closing Hymn/Invitation:

“Before the Throne of God Above”