The book of Hebrews in the Bible is an incredible book filled with innumerable truths and exhortations written to a primarily Hebrew audience, yet every bit applicable to our lives today. The book of Hebrews points to Jesus as being the ultimate High Priest and Mediator between God and man. This was God's plan from the beginning, that He would send his only Son as a substitute offering for our sins, so that whoever believes in Him will be saved and have eternal life.
There are so many truths you can take away from this book, but I will share with you two that stuck out to me. First is that we should throw off any anything that entangles or hinders us from having a close relationship with God and not lose heart through opposition or trials!
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,
let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.
And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
For the
joy set before him he
endured the cross, scorning its shame,
and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners,
so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." Hebrews 12:1-3
We are to put our full trust in God and be obedient to His word, thus showing our love and faith in Him. The message is clear- if there is anything weighing you down, burden or sin you are carrying- lay those down at the foot of the cross, press on FIXING OUR EYES ON JESUS. For Christ defeated the strongholds of sin and Satan by his death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. We can now walk in victory over our sin and not be enslaved to it any longer!
One of the others key truths I took away from this book is the ability we have, as Christians, to approach the throne of grace with confidence. Why can we have this confidence? Because we serve a great High Priest- JESUS who sympathizes with us in our weakness. How does he sympathize with us in our weakness? Because he was tempted in EVERY way as we are and yet NEVER fell into sin. He is a loving, gracious and compassionate God who extends His mercy and grace to us in our times of need.
"Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens,
Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." -Hebrews 4:14-17
We have a GREAT GOD who sympathizes with our weaknesses and will restore us and make us BEAUTIFUL and RIGHTEOUS in His sight through the precious blood of Jesus Christ. He has redeemed us and rescued us from our old way of life, given us new life and purpose in Him so that we may be obedient to His will and proclaim His excellencies to others.
We can walk confidently in His forgiveness, mercy and grace and this great love makes us RADIANT!
Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
Psalm 34:5 (NIV)
What a beautiful visual this verse gives me!
It says that when we look to Jesus, we are beautiful because we understand what it means to be forgiven. He says our faces are never covered with shame.
Because I look to Him, I am radiant, I am beautiful, I am "vividly bright and shining." I am radiant because of the joy and confidence that can only come from a strong sense of who I am in Him.
When we are looking to our spouses, our children, our friends, or our outward appearance or talents to give us a sense of our identity or our purpose rather than to God, we feel shame because we can never measure up against human expectation. BUT- When we allow ourselves to be fully accepted and loved by God, though, we begin to understand how He made us unique and for a purpose, and even when we mess up, we can come to him and know that if we ask Him, he WILL forgive us and make us clean!
When we are free of shame...
we are beautiful!!
Don't look for your value or identity in how good you look, or how talented you are, or how successful you are in the worlds eyes. Nothing will fill you like the love of Christ. Put trusting in God and loving Him as your number one priority and he will make you RADIANT. You will shine bright, just how he intended.
You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy and make me radiant in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:11)
I pray you will be encouraged by this truth and that you can walk in freedom of sin and draw near to God with confidence, for he has REDEEMED you, RESTORED you and makes you RADIANT as you walk in His presence!
xoxo,
Dorothy Pro
