{"id":3286,"date":"2022-11-25T19:30:38","date_gmt":"2022-11-25T19:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/?p=3286"},"modified":"2022-11-25T19:30:38","modified_gmt":"2022-11-25T19:30:38","slug":"draw-near-to-god-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/2022\/11\/25\/draw-near-to-god-part-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Draw Near to God Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"

[I derived portions of this post from two past sermons I have preached on Hebrews 4:14\u201316 and Hebrews 10:11\u201323 as well as from a past article I wrote. This post is the second in a two-part series. You can read the first article, \u201cDraw Near to God Part I\u201d, here. For context, I have kept a large portion of the introduction to Part I here.]<\/p>\n

A few weeks ago I preached on Mark 1:1\u201313. I pointed out that Mark uses the same language at the beginning of the book at Jesus\u2019 baptism (Mark 1:10\u201311) as he does at the end of the book at Jesus\u2019 death on the cross (Mark 15:37\u201339). They each read:<\/p>\n

Mark 1:10\u201311\u201410\u00a0<\/sup><\/b><\/span>And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn<\/i><\/b> open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11\u00a0<\/sup><\/b><\/span>And a voice came from heaven, \u201cYou are my beloved Son<\/i><\/b>; with you I am well pleased.<\/p>\n

Mark 15:37\u201339\u201437\u00a0<\/sup><\/b><\/span>And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38\u00a0<\/sup><\/b><\/span>And the curtain of the temple was torn<\/i><\/b> in two, from top to bottom. 39\u00a0<\/sup><\/b><\/span>And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, \u201cTruly this man was the Son of God<\/i><\/b>!\u201d<\/p>\n

I observed that Mark frames Jesus\u2019 earthly ministry with proclamations of his identity as the Son of God paired with the tearing open of the heavens and the temple curtain. He does this in order to point us to this reality\u2014Jesus secures access to the Father<\/i>.[1]<\/span> Here, I hope to take a deeper dive into what exactly that means for you if indeed your life is hidden in Christ. To do that, I turn to the book of Hebrews.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Drawing Near to God in Hebrews<\/b><\/p>\n

The book of Hebrews goes to great lengths to exhort Christians to draw near<\/i> to God. Along with many great promises, Hebrews highlights two foundational reasons for us to draw near to God: (1) Jesus is our great high priest, and (2) Jesus is the perfect offering for sins. These two realities go hand-in-hand. In Part I of this two-part post, we dived deeply into the reality of Jesus as our great high priest. We noted that in the midst of sin, we are often tempted to unbelief in Jesus\u2019 high priestly ministry; therefore, we often hesitate to draw near to God in repentance. Rather, we linger in a sinful sense of guilt and shame. But Heb 4:14\u201316 reveals that because of Jesus\u2019 high priestly ministry we are welcomed with open arms into God\u2019s presence and should draw near to him confidently. But Hebrews doesn\u2019t stop there. It continues to pile on the reasons for why we should confidently draw near to God even in the day of our sin. Here in Part II we turn our attention to Jesus, the perfect offering for sins and how that too bolsters our confidence to draw near to God in repentance.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Jesus our Offering for Sins<\/b><\/p>\n

\n

Hebrews 10:19\u201322\u201419\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>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.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Here, Hebrews 10:19 proclaims that \u201cwe have confidence to enter the holy places<\/i>.\u201d Therefore, Heb 10:22 exhorts us to \u201cdraw near<\/i>.\u201d The reason for our confidence is twofold. First, we are confident \u201csince we have a great high priest<\/i> over the house of God,\u201d which we unpacked in Part I. The other reason for our confidence?\u2014the blood of Jesus: \u201cwe have confidence to enter the holy places, by the blood of Jesus<\/i>\u201d (Heb 10:19). The author of Hebrews binds up our confidence to draw near to God with Jesus\u2019 sacrificial offering for sins on the cross. He sharpens his point by comparing Jesus\u2019 offering for sins to the sin offerings under the Old Covenant. In doing so he shows the vast superiority and completeness of Jesus\u2019 offering for sins. Consider a few verses just prior to vv. 19\u201322.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Our Perfect Offering for Sins<\/b><\/p>\n

\n

Hebrews 10:11\u201314\u201411\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God 13\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. 14\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

For we as Christians, to not draw near to God in repentance because of a particular sin or sins is to effectively say that Jesus\u2019 sacrifice is not enough, whether we realizes it or not. The author of Hebrews recognizes our proneness, even as believers, to unbelief. Therefore he offers us a glorious reminder of the reality of Jesus\u2019 offering for sins so that we might never minimize its effectiveness. Here, Hebrews 10:11\u201314 compares the sin offerings of priests under the Old Covenant to that of Jesus\u2019 sin offering of himself in order to show the superiority of Jesus\u2019 offering. Notice the details of Old Covenant priests\u2019 sacrificial work:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • \n
      \n
    • \n
        \n
      • Every priest<\/i><\/li>\n
      • Every priest has stood<\/i> daily<\/i><\/li>\n
      • <\/i>Every priest repeatedly offers<\/i><\/li>\n
      • Every priest repeatedly offers the same sacrifices<\/i><\/li>\n
      • Every priest repeatedly offers the same sacrifices, which can never remove sins<\/i><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Before Jesus, every<\/i> priest<\/i> under the Old Covenant had to repeatedly<\/i> offer sacrifices for sins every single day, <\/i>hence their daily standing<\/i> (Heb 10:11). Furthermore, these sacrifices could not even take away sins<\/i>! (Heb 10:11). But the one great high priest, Jesus<\/em>, when he \u201coffered for all time<\/i> a single sacrifice <\/i>for sins, he sat down<\/i> at the right hand of God\u201d (Heb 10:12). After his sacrifice, Jesus\u2019 sacrificial work was done, having sealed his victory (Heb 10:13). Where Old Covenant offerings could not take away sins, Jesus\u2019 offering did away with sins forever and established the New Covenant in his blood (Heb 10:16\u201317; Jer 31:33\u201334). Indeed, \u201cby a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified<\/i>\u201d (Heb 10:14). <\/i>The message is clear,\u00a0 by his perfect offering for sins<\/em>, Jesus perfects his people.<\/i><\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        Access Secured<\/b><\/p>\n

        \n

        Hebrews 10:19\u201322\u201419\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22\u00a0<\/sup><\/span>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.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

        So we turn our attention back to Hebrews 10:19\u201322. All of the details regarding Jesus’ perfect offering perfecting his people are packed into this one phrase, “by the blood of Jesus.” It’s Jesus’ blood alone that is our confidence to draw near to God.\u00a0<\/em>When the blood and water poured from Jesus\u2019 side (John 19:34), \u201cour hearts [were] sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies [were] washed with pure water\u201d (Heb 10:22). An \u201cevil conscience\u201d is the equivalent of \u201can evil, unbelieving heart\u201d (Heb 3:12). The very unbelief, then, that would tempt us to not draw near to God is what Jesus struck down when he died on the cross. Thus, because of this perfectly purifying work of Jesus\u2019 perfect offering for sins on the cross, we have \u201cfull assurance\u201d (Heb 10:22) to draw near to God, just as the author of Hebrews exhorts. And, by the same sacrifice, Jesus also made the way into God\u2019s presence. Jesus opened what Hebrews 10:20 calls \u201cthe new and living way that he opened for us <\/i>through the curtain, that is, through his flesh.\u201d This should bring to mind Jesus\u2019 crucifixion in Mark 15:37\u201339, referenced above. There, at his death on the cross, the curtain of the temple tore\u2014a divine sign that complete access into God\u2019s presence had been granted through Jesus\u2019 bodily death. So, Jesus\u2019 perfect offering for sins perfected us for God\u2019s presence and<\/i> opened for us a way into God\u2019s presence. This<\/em> is why you should confidently draw near to God. Even in the day of your sin you should confidently draw near to God. Even in the day of that one particular sin that seems to continually plague and beset you\u2014draw near to God confidently, because your sin and this purpose, your drawing near to God, are the very reasons Jesus offered the perfect sin offering, his life<\/i>.<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        Jesus our Great High Priest and our Perfect Offering for Sins<\/b><\/p>\n

        Jesus\u2019 dual role as the great high priest of our faith and the perfect offering for our sins clears the path for us as Christians to fly to God<\/i> in repentance<\/em>, not away from him in shame<\/i>. Take encouragement in this, brothers and sisters. And when you find yourself weary in your continuing battle with the flesh, don\u2019t pick up again that old helmet of unbelief. Instead, remember to don your helmet of salvation\u2014salvation won for you by Jesus our great high priest and our perfect sin offering\u2014and continue to fight. And, fly back to the throne of grace, where you are always welcome with open arms, and where Jesus sits ready to pour upon you mercy and grace to help in time of need (Heb 4:16).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        [I derived portions of this post from two past sermons I have preached on Hebrews 4:14\u201316 and Hebrews 10:11\u201323 as well as from a past article I wrote. This post…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,15],"tags":[2595,558,657,664,677,2617,2616,2593,2619,2620,1808,1327,1456,2618,1581],"class_list":["post-3286","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-devotions","tag-draw-near-to-god","tag-forgiveness","tag-gospel","tag-grace","tag-great-high-priest","tag-hebrews-1011-14","tag-hebrews-1019-22","tag-hebrews-414-16","tag-jesus-the-perfect-offering-for-sins","tag-jesus-blood","tag-new-covenant","tag-repentance","tag-sin","tag-sin-offering","tag-throne-of-grace"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3286","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3286"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3286\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3290,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3286\/revisions\/3290"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3286"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3286"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3286"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}