Hebrews 10:19-39;: This weekend I am speaking in Indiana on being a Daughter of the King. One of the assignments I have during the weekend is to address the subject of assurance. As I read Hebrews 10 this morning it was such a great reminder of why we can have assurance.
19 “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22let 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. 23Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
Some of you reading this may be wondering what the curtain and the holy place has to do with what Jesus did for us. In the Old Testament only the High Priest could enter the most holy place and he could only enter it once a year as he gave an animal sacrifice for his sin and those of his people. When Jesus came He paid the price for our sin so no animal sacrifice would ever be needed again. When Jesus died the curtain in that most holy place was ripped from the top to the bottom. God was saying there is no longer a barrier between God and man. Jesus paid that price to bring us back into right relationship with Him. Therefore we now can come to Him having confessed our sin and finding forgiveness through the sacrifice of Jesus. We can know that we are saved and have an audience with God. He draws near to us and we to Him. An outward sign of what has happened on the inside is that we love each other and encourage one another to continue to grow in Christ. We are to gather together for the purpose of sharing Christian fellowship and encouraging one another to walk as Christ would have us walk. The return of Christ is coming and as a believer we long for the Father to find us faithfully doing His will when He returns.