Hebrews 4:15-16 (NLT)
This High Priest of ours understands our
weaknesses, for He faced all of the same testings we do, yet He did not sin. So
let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his
mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.
“Archiereus” is the Greek word used for
High Priest. The chief duty of the High
Priest in the Old Testament was, once a year on the Day of Atonement, to enter
into the Holy of Holies (from which the other priests were excluded) and offer
sacrifices for his own sins and the sins of the people. Jesus became the High Priest. By receiving Him as your Savior He becomes
your High Priest. Jesus offered Himself
as an expiatory sacrifice to God for all sin of mankind. After His death and resurrection, He ascended
into heaven where today He continually intercedes on behalf of all His
believers. He intercedes on your behalf,
every day, whenever you need Him, to help you get through whatever problem or
challenge of life you face.
What is so
different about our Lord and Savior, compared to any other religion, is that He
Himself lived a life on earth just like everyone else. Because of His humanity, He faced the same
testings of life that you have or will face.
Just think about the different ways that He was tested---by Satan in the
wilderness (Matthew 4 where Satan tempted Him by the three temptations listed
in I John 2:16—lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and the boastful pride of
life), by the scribes and Pharisees in all their confrontations against Him
described throughout the gospels, by so many people who rejected Him, and by
those who eventually crucified Him.
However, because
of His divinity, He did not commit any sin in facing these testings and
temptations. He fled fleshly
temptations, quoted the Word of God to fight off worldly temptation, and
directly told Satan to “get behind Me” (Matthew 16:23). Since He knows exactly what you are up
against in your life, you must believe this and trust in Him to help you
overcome whatever testings and temptations are going on in your life right now
and for as long as you live.
Scripture says, “come boldly to the throne
of our gracious God”. What does this
mean? It means to come to God in prayer
and claim His promises to help you.
Frances (Fanny) Crosby, hymnist who wrote the words to “Blessed
Assurance” wrote these words to a song based on Hebrews 4:16—
Come, ye who from your hearts believe
That Jesus answers prayer
Come boldly to a throne of grace
And claim His promise there.
That, if His love in us abide
And we in Him are one,
Whatever in His Name we ask
It surely will be done.
Coming to God in prayer. Through Christ, He died to save you and He
lives every day to save you and keep you.
He tells you to come to Him. You
receive His mercy (He covers the things you should not have done) and you find
His grace (He empowers you to do what you should do but do not have the power
on your own). He helps you when you need
it most and Greek phrase used here literally means “in the nick of time”. You will receive mercy and find grace to help
you for every need always in the nick of time.
The
old saying is true…….God’s timing is perfect, never early, never late. Just be patient and trust in Him and don’t
complain while you wait.
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