No Fear

Read Hebrews 10:18-39

“We can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place
because of the blood of Jesus.”
(Hebrews 10:19)

Thoughts… What a contrasting portrait this verse paints to the picture we get of the Old Testament saints who found themselves in the presence of God. They were anything but bold. Fearful, unworthy, undone is more like it.

So how is it that we are not only able, but exhorted to march boldly into the presence of Almighty God? The answer is simple: We enter by the blood of Jesus Christ. When we come before God, he doesn’t see us as we truly are in the reality of our human sinfulness, he sees us covered by the sinless, perfect blood of his dear Son. We come before God on the credit of Another.

Obviously, we should never take that for granted. We should never think that God winks at our sin, or that now, under the new covenant, he tolerates that which is unholy. He is still a holy God. He is eternally intolerant of sin in his presence. He is still the righteous Judge of all mankind. That will never change.

Yet the very fact of those immutable truths should make the rights and privileges we now enjoy by virtue of God’s grace through the death of Jesus Christ even sweeter. We can enter God’s holy presence with boldness—and we don’t deserve it!

No fear! What a wonderful privilege made possible by the blood of Jesus.

Prayer… Father, even as I bring this prayer before you today, I realize that I have no right on my own to do so. I have no inherent personal righteousness that gives me this privilege. Yet you have made it possible for me by the blood of your Son. Thank you—a million times, thank you. I am eternally indebted to you for this grace.

One More Thing… “Christ took our sins and the sins of the whole world as well as the Father’s wrath on his shoulders, and he has drowned them both in himself so that we are thereby reconciled to God and become completely righteous.” — Martin Luther