Hebrews 9:24
Study Hebrews 9:24, particularly in the context of which it is given, that of explaining Christ’s ministry in heaven for us after His sacrificial death on our behalf. Though much can be said, we want to focus on one point, the phrase at the end, which says that Christ now appears in the presence of God for us.
Image © Lars Justinen from GoodSalt.com
Think about what that means. We, sinful, fallen humanity; we, who would be consumed by the brightness of God’s glory if we faced it now; we, no matter how bad we have been or how blatantly we have violated God’s holy law, have Someone who appears in the presence of God for us. We have a Representative standing before the Father on our behalf. Think of how loving, forgiving, and accepting Christ was when here on earth. This same Person is now our Mediator in heaven?
This is the other part of the good news. Not only did Jesus pay the penalty for our sins, having taken them upon Himself at the Cross (1 Peter 2:24), but now He stands in the presence of God, a Mediator between heaven and earth, between humanity and Divinity.
This makes perfect sense. Jesus, as both God and Man (a sinless perfect Man) is the only One who could bridge the gap between humanity and God, caused by sin. The crucial point to remember in all this (though there are many) is that there is now a Man, a Human Being, who can relate to all our trials, pains, and temptations (Hebrews 4:14-15), representing us before the Father.
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time” (1 Timothy 2:5-6). What two roles does this text put Jesus in, and how were these roles prefigured in the earthly-sanctuary service?
The great news of the new covenant is that now, because of Jesus, repentant sinners have Someone representing them in heaven before the Father, Someone who earned for them what they could never earn for themselves, and that is perfect righteousness, the only righteousness that can stand in the presence of God. Jesus, with that perfect righteousness, wrought out in His life through suffering (Hebrews 2:10), stands before God, claiming for us forgiveness from sin and power over sin, because without these we would have no hope, not now and certainly not in the judgment.
| Pray and meditate over the idea of a human being, Someone who has experienced temptation to sin, standing before God in heaven. What does that mean to you personally? What kind of hope and encouragement does that bring? |
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