Word of Encouragement (6/19/2020)
The Hebrews writer gives us another reason that we should enter the holy places of the heavenly temple with confidence:
“…and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”
It is because we have Jesus Christ as the great priest over the house of God. Here, Jesus is called “a great priest,” instead of “a high priest.” He is not denying that Jesus is the true high priest. He spoke of Jesus as “a great high priest” in 4:14. And that is most likely what he meant when he referred to Jesus as “a great priest” here. Adding “great” to the title of “high priest” shows how Jesus is greater than all the high priests of Israel, including Aaron.
The Hebrews writer gave many reasons for this but they can be summed up in this way: unlike all the high priests of the old testament, who had to be replaced generation after generation, Jesus is the eternal high priest, who made the once-for-all sacrifice of Himself for our eternal salvation. But there is another aspect of Jesus’ superior priestly ministry: He can lead us into the holy places of the heavenly temple. According to the Levitical regulations, only the priests and high priests could enter the holy places of the temple. They were allowed to do so as the representatives of the people of Israel. But they could not bring any layperson into the sanctuaries of the temple. But Jesus, the Great High Priest, can do it, allowing us to draw near to the throne of God “with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”
No one can expect to approach God without a true heart. Hypocrisy and insincerity are unacceptable to God, who sees our innermost being and thoughts. But how can we approach God with a true heart when the heart is deceitful above all things (Jer. 17:9)? The good news is that the kind of truthfulness that is required of our hearts is that of faith, looking to Jesus Christ and relying on Him for our salvation. A heart that recognizes the all-sufficiency of Jesus as our Savior can have full assurance that He is more than able to save all those who trust Him.
Of course, this is possible because Jesus sprinkled our hearts clean from an evil conscience (by His precious blood) and washed our bodies with pure water (i.e., the Holy Spirit). An evil conscience is, on the one hand, a guilt-ridden conscience (which produces death [2 Cor. 7:10]) and, on the other hand, a seared conscience (which does not feel guilty). In contrast, a good conscience is, on the one hand, a conscience liberated from the fear of condemnation and, on the other hand, a sensitive conscience, whose “godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret” (2 Cor. 7:10). Love can convict us of our sin more powerfully than the law can ever do. But a conscience that is convicted by love does not despair but returns to the Beloved in true repentance and faith.
What a wonderful and powerful great high priest we have in Jesus Christ! He came to this world to usher us all the way into the inner sanctum of the heavenly temple, into the presence of God. He suffered and died so that we might enter it with boldness and joy. Let us not neglect this privilege but Christ it and enjoy it to the fullest, especially in assembling together as God's redeemed people for worship!