Do You Know The Lord's Door Is Always Open?
An Open Door for Us
Finding a quiet time and place to study at home was a challenge for me as a young pastor with a young family.
I had a small study with glass-paned French doors where I’d work on my messages. When the doors were closed, my older children knew not to disturb my study preparation.
But it was different for the younger children. My wife helped me understand their access to me was more important than my message preparation. They could burst into my little study anytime they wanted.
Later, when my wife called, I made it clear to my church office staff that she had priority over who was in my office or what I was working on. Even when I was “on the clock” so to speak, my family had open access to me.
Just as I learned to prioritize my family’s access to me, the Lord helped me see believers have a similar freedom to enter His presence. We can burst into the Lord’s presence whenever we need to and whatever the need is. We don’t have to wait for the right time.
The door is always open to the Father’s presence for those of us who know Him as our Father. He always has time for us and gives us His full attention. As His children, we need to know this and be fully assured of this.
Scripture Text
We need to hold on to our declaration of faith: We have a superior chief priest who has gone through the heavens. That person is Jesus, the Son of God.
We have a chief priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses. He was tempted in every way that we are, but he didn’t sin.
So we can go confidently to the throne of God’s kindness [grace] to receive mercy and find kindness, which will help us at the right time. (Hebrews 4:14-16 GW)
[Context– Hebrews 4]
Key Phrase —
We can go confidently to the throne of God’s kindness [grace].
Dig Deeper Into the Text—
What are we encouraged “ to hold on to"?
In what way are we encouraged to come to God?
What are we assured of when we come to God's throne of kindness [grace]?
Things to Consider—
Those who trust in the Lord Jesus have great assurances in these verses! We also have an exhortation based on these assurances. I see three primary assurances that strengthen our faith. They give us great reasons to continue in our faith.
Jesus is our living bridge between heaven and earth. He speaks on our behalf in heaven (Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:34), and also speaks to us by His Spirit and the written Word of God (Hebrews 2:1-4). Jesus promised His followers to always be with Him. He sent the Holy Spirit to live in us (John 14:25-26).
Jesus was tempted in every way we are, yet never sinned. He understands our weaknesses. But He is stronger than our weaknesses because He overcame them through His death on the cross and His resurrection. We find our strength to resist and overcome temptation by trusting in Him.
The weaknesses we struggle with are the consequence of sin and our selfish nature. Since He did not inherit humanity’s sin, sin did not overpower Him. He conquered it through the cross. Therefore, He can relate to us in our struggles and temptations and help us in our time of need.
Because Jesus was fully human and God in nature, He understands our needs at a level no one else can. He can handle our deepest needs and struggles, and He is approachable at any time.
The Lord desires to help us overcome sin, but we need to be willing to come to Him in our time of need. We are assured of this full access because of His grace—His loving kindness.
We are exhorted to come confidently before His throne to receive His mercy and grace whenever we need it. This means we have open access to the Lord anytime, anywhere, and for any reason.
I find myself bursting into His presence a lot. I hope you will also know this same freedom. Allow these great assurances to strengthen your faith in Jesus.
Answer These Questions to Apply God’s Word in Your Life—
Do you have difficulty accepting that Jesus can relate to your struggles and weaknesses?
Do you understand how Jesus is able to understand our weaknesses even though He never sinned?
Have you learned to come boldly into God's presence when you need His mercy or grace?
Here’s a link to a free study guide for the book of Hebrews— Study Guide and Study Questions for Hebrews
