TEXT: Hebrews 10:19-39

SUBJECT: Exposition of Hebrews #12: Access to God

These words open the second part of Hebrews. The first was an argument; the second is an application. He has argued the superiority of Christ over all others. He is over the prophets, over the angels, over Moses, and over Aaron. However Christ is compared to others, "He must, in all things, have the preeminence".

From here on, applications are drawn from our Lord's preeminence. The first is presented in the latter half of chapter ten. It begins with an assertion. The author has proven his case; he'll no longer argue it. He will simply state his position. And what he states is this: The Way to God Has Been Opened. Vv.19-21: "Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God..."

The way to "the Holiest" has been opened. "The Holiest" stands for God. We have access to Him. The way has been opened by "the blood of Christ". "Blood of Christ" is a figure of speech, meaning His death. In other words, because Christ died, the way to God is open. How does one follow from the other? Here's how: Man was created in fellowship with God. His sin, however, disrupted the relationship. And on both sides: It inflamed the holy wrath of God and left man guilty. Until both problems are solved, the fellowship cannot be restored. "The blood of Christ" did just that. It satisfied the justice of God; it covered the sins of His people. Consequently, we may "enter the Holiest".

This "way" is both "new" and "living". These words distinguish it from the way to God through the priesthood of Aaron, which was (in the First Century) "growing old and ready to vanish away". Unlike the other priesthood, our Lord's is not dying out, but is as alive for us as it was for the Christians who first read the Epistle. Christ's way to God is ever fresh, vital, young. In the words of Jeremiah, it is

"New every morning".

This "way" has been "consecrated" for us. It is opened for us "through the veil, that is, His flesh". The language recalls the Temple then standing in Jerusalem. The Holiest on earth was entered "through the veil"--a long, heavy curtain. The Holiest in heaven, however, is entered through another, richer veil--"His flesh". It is by the tearing of our Lord's body that we have access to God.

Because He has died for us, He becomes a "High Priest over the house of God". The imagery was familiar to the first readers; it may not be to us. It recalls the breastplate worn by the High Priest. It was studded with twelve precious stones representing the tribes of Israel. When he entered the Holy of Holies, they went with him symbolically. Likewise, when the Lord Jesus ascended to heaven, His people joined Him as the Right Hand of God. Therefore, by Christ, we enter the presence of God. We have access.

The access we have is not partial, doubtful, or revokable. We have "boldness (or confidence) to enter the Holiest by the blood of Christ". Charles Wesley was on to something when he wrote

"With confidence I now draw nigh

And `Father Abba, Father' cry".

This is the privilege of God's people! A privilege that ought to strike us as more wonderful than it often does; a privilege we ought to be more thankful for than we often are; a privilege we ought to take more advantage of than we often do. Do we feel the glory?

"Nothing between my soul and the Savior,

So that His blessed face may be seen;

Nothing preventing the least of His favor,

Keep the way clear! Let nothing between".

The assertion is made: The way to God has been opened. Three inferences follow, vv.22-25.

The first is this: If the way to God has been opened, let's take advantage of it. V.22: "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water". The way to God was not opened for our inspection or admiration; it was opened for our use. Use it! Draw near to God. Do so in "full assurance" that the blood of Christ has cleared your conscience and washed away your guilt.

The second inference is this: If the way to God has been opened, let's be proud of it. V.23: "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful". Access to God is nothing to be ashamed of. Therefore, we ought to quit worrying what others will think if we speak of it. Nor should we care what they do. If they laugh--let them laugh. If they persecute--let them persecute. If they kill--let them kill! What does it matter so long as we have the ultimate treasure, access to God. "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so".

The third inference is this: If the way to God has been opened, let's help others stay on it. Vv.24-25: And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves as the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching". There are many temptations to those "on the way" to God. Read Pilgrim's Progress for a partial list. Thus, others need your help. How should you help them?

It is not easy staying in touch with God and helping others do the same. But it is supremely important. In vv.26-31, we find out why.

They begin with these terrifying words, "For if we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries".

It speaks of "wilfully sinning". The language does not indicate "a sin"--but a sinful pattern of life. What pattern? A turning from Jesus Christ. If we turn from Christ, we are hopelessly lost. Why? Because "there remains no sacrifice for sins". The Lord Jesus is the only Savior; if we turn from Him, there is no one else to save us. And, being unsaved is a fearful prospect. There is nothing but "a certain expectation of judgment and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries". The "judgment" is both "fiery" and "certain". And it will "devour"; not annihilate--but fully, finally, and forever burn against the adversaries of Christ.

A comparison is made in vv.28-29: "Anyone who rejected Moses' law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?"

The Mediator of the Old Covenant was Moses. Anyone who disobeyed him died without mercy. The Mediator of the New Covenant is Christ. Who is greater? The Lord Jesus, of course. Thus, turning from Him is a sin far worse and damnable than breaking the Ten Commandments every day. Consequently, anyone who turns from Christ is worse-off than the vilest sinners of the Old Testament. Pharaoh, Korah, Balaam, Ahab, Jezebel are better-off than the "nice, moral, responsible" church-goer who turns his back on Jesus Christ.

A Scripture is cited in support of this warning, Deuteronomy 32:35-36. "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay" and "The LORD will judge His people". The former recalls the Judge; the latter recalls the judged. It is God judging His professed people.

V.31 is a summary: "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God".

How do we avoid falling into apostasy? Vv.32-38 provide two answers:

The first is to recall our early Christian lives. "But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings: partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated; for you had compassion on me in my chains, and joyfully accepted the plundering of your goods, knowing that you have a better and enduring possession for yourselves in heaven".

When they were first converted, the Hebrews were so filled with joy and gratitude that they thought little of their sufferings. But, over the years, they became lukewarm. They needed to recall the heady days of their "first love".

The second is to recall what awaits us. "For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: `For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him".

These believers were drifting away from Christ because they had forgotten the reward that would be theirs at His Second Coming. If they would but keep this in mind, they would "live by faith". And so will we.

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time

Are not worthy of being compared with the glory

that will be revealed in us".

He closes with a word of personal confidence. It is true, of course, that some will fall away from Christ. Even some prominent men--Judas and Demas--for example. But he thinks better of these brethren: "But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul".

Can the same be said of you? I trust it can be. Backsliding is common; backsliding is dangerous. May God renew us; may He refresh us; may He give us the grace to "Draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water". Amen.