It is amazing to consider that the Creator of the universe suffers with us as our Great High Priest! Not only that, but He welcomes us to the throne of grace where He grants mercy and grace to help us our time of need.
Jesus Our High Priest
Hebrews 4:14-16
As we come to Hebrews 4:14, the author really is bringing us into a new section of this book. Up to this point, he has shown us that Jesus is better than the angels in chapters 1-2; better than Moses in 3:1-6. Now he begins to show how Jesus is better than the Jewish high priest. So, beginning in 4:14, the author will continue to show the superiority of Christ as our high priest, all the way into chapter 10. He does digress from 5:11 – 6:20, but then resumes his thought at 7:1.
Now, Hebrews 4:14 is not the first time the author has mentioned that Jesus is our high priest. He alludes to that truth in 1:3 when he writes that Jesus made purification of sins. Well, that was the job of the high priest. He was to make atonement for the sins of the people.
Then in 2:17 he writes, “Therefore, he had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”
Then two verses later in 3:1 he writes, “Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession.”
That’s why he begins 4:14 with the word “Therefore.” He is linking 4:14 with 2:17 and 3:1. Up until now, the author has simply said that Jesus is a merciful and faithful high priest. Now, he is going to expand much more on Jesus’ high priestly ministry.
The way he goes about teaching on Jesus as our high priest in this section is to first give a revelation of Christ, and then exhort his readers to do something based on that revelation. He does this twice. A revelation and an exhortation, and then another revelation and an exhortation.
So this morning, that’s how we will look at the passage. We’ll look at revelation #1 and its corresponding exhortation, and then look at revelation #2 and its corresponding exhortation.
1. Revelation of Christ: He is our Great High Priest
But why is Jesus our great high priest? He gives us two reasons.
He passed through the heavens. Of course, this is something that the Jewish high priests could never do. They could pass from the outer court into the Holy Place. And they could pass from the Holy Place into the Holy of Holies. But Jesus passed through the heavens. He offered Himself as the atoning sacrifice on the cross, rose from the dead three days later, and then passed through the heavens by ascending to the right hand of God, where He presented Himself to God as having accomplished the work of redemption.
There may be an allusion here to the “heavens” being like the thick veil which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. The high priest could only pass through that veil on the Day of Atonement, and only after killing a goat and bringing its blood with him to sprinkle on the mercy seat.
He is the Son of God. Of course, there is a sense in which all believers are sons and daughters of God. There is also a sense in which angels are sometimes referred to as the “sons of God.” But Jesus was not a son of God in that sense. The Bible reveals that He is the only begotten Son. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son…” The NIV translates it as “His one and only Son.” Jesus is the unique Son of God. He is the Son of God in a way that angels and men will never be.
Jesus is the Son of God in the sense that He shares the same being as God the Father. He is a different person than God the Father, but He shares the same being with Him.
Jesus is our great high priest because He is God. All the Jewish high priests were mere humans, but He is divine.
The Jewish high priests could offer sacrifices for sin, but in 10:4 we are told that it was impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. The best it could do was reveal the truth to the people that sin can only be atoned by the substitute of a blood sacrifice. In this way, these sacrifices were a type and shadow of the ultimate and perfect sacrifice that Jesus would offer when He came into the world. Jesus is the great High Priest, because His sacrifice actually removed sins forever and made the offerer perfect! – 10:14.
Corresponding Exhortation: “let us hold fast our confession”
This is the third time in this book that the author has exhorted his readers to “hold fast.”
3:6 “but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house – whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.”
3:14 “For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.”
In 10:23 he will write, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
You might say that this entire book is one long exhortation to hold fast to Christ.
So, what is the link between the revelation and the exhortation? Jesus Christ is Great. He is the Son of God. Therefore, it is only reasonable that we would not let go of our hold on Him to return to the merely human Jewish high priests. Since He is infinitely great, being God, everything else pales into insignificance compared to Him. Therefore, let us hold fast our confession!
The opposite of holding fast your confession is to drift away or fall away. That’s why the author says in 2:1 “For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.” He says in 3:12 “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.”
Pay much closer attention! Take care! Hold fast! Are there any here who are being tempted to leave Christ, and go back to their old lives? Beware that you are not hardened by the deceitfulness of sin (3:13)! When a person’s heart is hardened, they stop being convicted of their sin. They no longer griever over their disobedience to God. Their conscience is no longer pricked. If they go long enough in this condition, their conscience will be seared as with a branding iron, where they will no longer feel guilt over sin.
If you are being tempted to go back to your old life, your old ways, your old sinful habits, sin is deceiving you. Sin is telling you that you would be happier and better off to just leave Christ and go back to your old ways when you drank and smoked, and hooked up with all kinds of women, and swore and lied and cheated, and didn’t care that you did it.
My friend, you have a GREAT high priest! Don’t be so foolish as to leave him. He is the only One that can save you!
2. Revelation of Christ: He is our Sympathizing High Priest
If it is true that “we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses” then it is true that we do have a high priest who can sympathize with our weaknesses. This word “sympathize” in the Greek is a compound word. It literally means “to suffer with.” It means that Jesus commiserates with us, has compassion on us, and is touched by our feelings.
Even though Jesus Christ is right now in heaven at the right hand of God the Father, He is not a distant, remote, and detached Deity. The truth of Scripture is that when you suffer, He suffers. He feels the pain you go through. He feels for you. When you go through something, He’s going through it with you!
Are you suffering from dementia? Chronic pain? Anxiety? Loneliness? Depression? Cancer? Take heart! Jesus is suffering right along with you! He knows all about your situation and feels your pain. He has not left you or deserted you, but rather has entered into your suffering.
That’s why Jesus could say to Paul, “Why are you persecuting Me?” Of course, Paul knew nothing about him persecuting Jesus. But Jesus has so fully entered into the sufferings of His church, that when Paul persecuted the church, He was in reality also persecuting Jesus.
Weaknesses. The particular way in which Jesus sympathizes with us is in our weaknesses. In context, this is referring to our weakness to various temptations, because the verse goes on to say, “but One who has been tempted in all things as we are…” We all have weaknesses when it comes to temptations. One person may be tempted to drugs or alcohol. Another to gluttony. Another is tempted to view pornography. Another is tempted to coarse jesting and profanity. Another to lying. Hebrews 12:1 speaks of “the sin which so easily entangles us.” What your besetting sin? Where are you the weakest when it comes to temptations? Whatever it is, Jesus understands.
Why is Jesus able to sympathize with us in our weaknesses? Because He was tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.”
There are three basic kinds of temptations that we face. John lists then in 1 Jn. 2:16 – “the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life.” The lust of the flesh refers to the cravings of the body like food, drink, drugs, alcohol, and sex. The lust of the eyes refers to envy and covetousness. The lust of the eyes refers to things you see and want, but don’t have. You can’t be content, because you don’t have that thing. It might be a house, or car, or man or woman or so many subscribers or followers on social media. The pride of life refers to that inward desire for recognition, power, applause, and approval from men. It manifests itself in pride and ego.
Jesus faced all three of these kinds of temptations when the devil tempted him in the wilderness.
- The lust of the flesh – the devil tempted Him to turn stones into bread and break his fast before His Father directed Him to.
- The lust of the eyes – the devil told him that the glory of all the kingdoms of the world have been handed over to him and he would give them to Jesus if He would just worship him.
- The pride of life – the devil tempted him to throw himself off the pinnacle of the temple. Why would these even be a temptation? Jesus knew that the angels would come to His aid and keep Him from harm, and this would cause all of the people on the temple grounds to admire and reverence Him as someone great.
Those 3 areas of temptation were also all present in the first sin committed by Adam and Eve.
- Lust of the Flesh: Eve saw that the tree was “good for food” (Appetite).
- Lust of the Eyes: It was “a delight to the eyes” (Visual desire).
- Pride of Pride: It was “desired to make one wise” (Self-exaltation/status).
Where Adam and Eve succumbed to all three in the Garden, Jesus—often called the “Last Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:45)—faced the exact same kinds of temptations in a barren wilderness and overcame them using Scripture.
Jesus was tempted in all things as we are. He understands us. He can relate to us. In fact, He faced much stronger temptations than we ever will. Maybe our temptations get to a 3 out of 10 in intensity, but at that point we give in and sin. But Jesus didn’t give in, so the temptations got strong and stronger and more intense until they were a 10 out of 10. He bore the maximum pressure of temptation without breaking.
The Corresponding Exhortation: “Let us draw near to the throne of grace”
Where are we to draw near to? The throne of grace. Notice, we are not exhorted to draw near to the throne of judgment. Jesus Christ has transformed the throne of judgment into the throne of grace by shedding His blood. In the Old Testament, the ark of the covenant was a picture of God’s throne. That’s where God’s special immediate presence was. The pure gold slab that sat on top of the ark of the covenant was called the “mercy seat.” Why? Because on the Day of Atonement, the blood of an innocent sacrifice was sprinkled on top of that mercy seat. Normally God would be provoked to wrath and judgment by the sins of the people, which were typified by the 10 Commandments which they had broke, but were inside the ark. However, because of the blood shed and sprinkled, God was merciful to His sinning people. Atonement was made, sins were covered, and God was merciful.
You are not being exhorted to come before God to be punished. You are exhorted to come before God to receive mercy and grace. His wrath has been propitiated. Your sins have been purified and removed.
How are we to draw near? With confidence. In some translations it is with boldness. Why can we draw near with confidence and boldness and fearlessness? Because we are coming to a throne of grace. Christ has borne your punishment. You don’t need to be afraid of approaching God. He loves you and wants to give you mercy and grace.
Why are we to draw near? So that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Remember that the context of this verse is that we are weak when it comes to temptations, but Jesus has compassion for us and understands us perfectly.
In our temptations we need two things:
- Mercy for the temptations to sin that we gave in to. We need God to withhold the punishment that we deserve.
- Grace to withstand temptations. We need God to bestow the divine aid and favor we need to be victorious over the temptations.
Conclusion
Brothers and sisters, do you feel like you need mercy and grace to help in time of need? Do you feel your need for mercy and grace? Are you needy? God has made provision for you!
How do we take advantage of His provision? Draw near. How do you do that? Prayer. One of the most important activities in the Christian life is prayer. It is how we grow in our relationship with God and how we receive mercy and grace from God.
Christian, do you pray? When you are in the time of need, do you draw near to the throne of grace? How are we going to really know God if we don’t pray?
I’m going to offer some suggestions that I think will help to deepen your prayer life.
- Choose a time and place to pray daily. If you can choose a consistent time to spend in prayer, you will be better off. If you depend on praying when the Spirit leads you, your prayer life will suffer. God wants us to use self-discipline to develop our prayer life. Paul wrote “Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.” Choose a place to pray where you won’t be easily distracted. Leave your phone behind. Go to a solitary place like a closet, or a room in your house where you can be by yourself. You might go for a walk and pray while you are walking if that helps you to be more alert.
- Pray Scripture. Sometimes we are confused whether what we are praying for is God’s will. That’s where using the Bible in your prayer time can be very helpful. The Scriptures give us understanding as to God’s will. You might choose a psalm or one of the NT letters, and pray through it, making it person to you.
- Seek to develop a spirit of prayer throughout the day. 1 Thess.5:17 says “Pray without ceasing.” Seek to remain aware of the presence of God throughout the day. As you go about your day, pray about the things that come up. If you experience an unexpected blessing, give God thanks. If you experience temptation, go directly to God and ask Him for grace to withstand it. Offer up short prayers of thanks or supplication for help from God.
The point is your relationship with God. That’s what you want to grow in and deepen. You want to get to know God better and better, and the best way to do that is through the Bible and prayer.
- What do you find to be the most difficult thing in your prayer life?
- What have you found to be most helpful in strengthening your prayer life?
______________________________
© The Bridge
Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. For web posting, a link to this document on our website is preferred. Any exceptions to the above must be approved by The Bridge.
Follow Us!