Life on the Road

Reflections on Hebrews 4:12-16

When someone says to you, “I love you,” how does that affect you? Doesn’t that cause you to look into your heart so you know how to respond? You may ask yourself, “Do I love that person?” Or, you may ask, “Do they really love me?” I remember when my fellow pastors first met with our district superintendent, Rev. Stearns, and he said to us, “I love you.” I never had a D.S. say that to a gathering of clergy. It took me aback. It was a little awkward. He loves me? Do I love him? What he said caused me to look at my own heart. Such can be the power of words. They can strike us to the heart.
So it is with the word of God. Paul writes that the word of God is sharper than a two-edged sword that divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow. The word of God is able to judge the intentions and thoughts of the heart. The word of God is truth. God’s Truth is not relative. It is something that we must contend with and respond to. So, when we hear Jesus saying to us, “You did not choose me, but I chose you,” we have to respond to that. What does it mean, that I didn’t choose Jesus, but Jesus chose me? Just take a minute. Let that settle in. Jesus said, “You did not choose me, I chose you.”
The word of God is like a two-edged sword that judges the thoughts and intentions of our hearts. When we allow the word of God to enter in to our minds and hearts, something should happen. There should be a piercing, a stirring within, rumination on what we are hearing or reading. And along with that is the acknowledgment that we stand naked before God. No secrets. We don’t know very much about God, but God knows everything about us. There’s another piercing truth to mull over. God knows the inner recesses of our hearts. God knows every one of our thoughts and intentions. Should this not give us pause?
It should. Because, as Paul continues, the day will come when each of us will give an account of our life. Our thoughts, our words, and our deeds, the good and the bad, will all be laid before us one day when we stand before God. What will God see? Certainly, for all of us, it will be a mixed bag. None of us will come out smelling like a rose.
And so, we need a savior. We need an advocate. If God is the judge, we need a lawyer. Or, in the language of the church, we need a priest. A priest is someone who stands before God on our behalf. The priest is a sort of intermediary, or an advocate. For the Jews, during the times when there was a Temple, God had appointed for them that they have priests who would do their assigned work, receiving the offerings of the people and then sacrificing those offerings on their behalf. And once a year, the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies, to represent all of the people before God, asking for the cleansing of sin of all the people.
The work of the high priest entering the holy of holies for the annual plea that God cleanse all the people of the stain of sin is a symbol of another high priest, whose name is Jesus. By his own blood, Jesus offered up the sacrifice that cleanses the sin of all people for all generations. That is what happened at Calvary. But, the work of Jesus is not done. When he said on the cross, “It is finished,” Jesus was talking about the destruction of the power of death. It did not mean that Jesus was going to sit back and wait until the time comes for him to return as judge of the heavens and earth. No, Jesus is still active.
Jesus is our high priest. None of us can stand before God, for God is holy and nothing corrupt can stand before Him. We cannot stand before God by ourselves. We need to stand behind someone else, someone who is incorrupt, who can stand before God on our behalf. That someone is Jesus. And Jesus, the God-Man, is standing before God interceding for us, representing us.
And since we have Jesus standing before God on our behalf, Paul says, let us hold on to our confession. What is that confession? It can be as clear cut and simple as saying “Jesus is Lord.” No one can say that except by the help of the Holy Spirit. Our confession can be stated in various creeds, either the Apostles’ Creed or other affirmations of faith. Paul is telling us to hold on to what the church has received as truth. Jesus is representing us. Let us not forsake him who will never forsake us.
The temptation does come, from time to time, to quit. Life can be a long and weary struggle at times. Sometimes, life becomes a real burden. Prospects don’t look good. We sometimes relate to the psalmist who cried out, “For I was envious of the arrogant; I saw the prosperity of the wicked. All in vain I have kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence. For all day long I have been plagued, and am punished every morning. When I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end. When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in my heart, I was stupid and ignorant; I was like a brute beast toward you. Nevertheless I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me with honor. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire other than you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Yes, living the life of a Christian at times can be a struggle. We can become weary in doing good. We can become frustrated with ourselves, for try as we might, we continue to stumble, we continue to do the things we don’t want to do and fail to do the things that we know we should do. Sometimes, it may seem our Christian journey is similar to wandering around in a wilderness, and the temptation besets us to give up.
But we must hold on to our confession and trust that although life can be weary at times, that there is an end point, the Promised Land of rest. Eventually, we are all going to get there. And when we do, our life will be laid out before God and we will be judged. What will God see?
This thought may cause us to want to give up again. But that would be folly, because right now, the throne of judgment is the throne of grace and mercy. Jesus stands before the throne, and He knows what we are going through. He is sympathetic because He has experienced every temptation that we have and will experience. He’s been there. He knows how tough life can be, and how hard it is. Just because Jesus didn’t sin doesn’t mean it was easy for Him. Being fully human, Jesus knows what it’s like to be human, save sinning. So when Jesus prays for you and me, He prays as one who understands how hard it is. And so Jesus pleads to God on our behalf to have mercy on us. And Jesus, being righteous, offers an effective prayer. God answers that prayer. And God is merciful to us. And Jesus asks God to give us grace so that we can live a righteous life. And God answers that prayer too.
So, we can come before the throne of God, and we should regularly, both in public worship and privately, so that we might receive mercy and grace. Now is the time for us to receive this mercy and grace, so that we can become more righteous, so that we can live a better life, so that we can receive the strength we need to press on for the prize that awaits us. There is no good reason for us to quit in the journey of our life in Christ. God is our refuge and strength. We can receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need. And we can come before the throne any time we want. Certainly, this is why we come to worship here, to receive God’s mercy and grace. But it doesn’t have to be only in this building that we come before the throne. It is as simple as whispering the prayer, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.”
So, brothers and sisters in Christ, “let us make every effort to enter that rest,” the rest that is the Promised Land. The doors to heaven have been opened to us by Christ Jesus. We are now on our journey through the wilderness, laboring to walk on the narrow path, surrounded by temptation and danger. We are not alone. Jesus never stops praying for us. Trusting that, let us hold on to our confession, and never grow weary in doing good.