Enter into the Presence of God (Heb. 10:21-22)

SPIRITUAL DIARY For 05-12-03

 

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Enter into the presence of God

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 10: 21,22

 

            1.  Message of the verse:  “21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,

22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.”  (NIV)  “And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s people, let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him.  For our evil consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.”  (NLT)

            In verse 21 the writer is speaking of Jesus Christ who is the Great High Priest over the house of God.  In verse 22 the writer comes to the conclusion of the things that he has mentioned from verse 19, and that conclusion is, we as believers, are to “go right into the presence of God,” as the NLT says.  We can do this because we have true hearts that fully trust the Lord.  The next part of this verse I do admit that I am not perfectly sure of the meaning of the use of the word conscience, but I do think that it is related to salvation, because it is only through salvation in Jesus Christ that a person can have a clear conscience.  I am sure that there are other applications that are involved for this word.  The writer goes on to say that are hearts have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean and our bodies have been washed with pure water.  When Moses first consecrated Aaron and his sons as priests, (Aaron war the first high priest), he put blood from a sacrificed animal on the right ear lobe, the right hand, and the right big toe, and they were also ceremonially washed before they received the right to be priests.  I believe that this was a picture of what Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit do for a believer when they accept Christ’s forgiveness through His blood for their sins.  The Bible says that we are priests, for we can come into the very presence through our Great High Priest, Jesus Christ, we need no other intercessor.  The believer is also said to have been washed by the Holy Spirit when he was saved, and this also is pictured in the OT.

 

            2.  Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I think of all of these things that God has done in order to bring about salvation for me I am much more in ahh of all of the love that God has for me, and He did all of these things while I was yet an enemy of His, so that I could become one of His children.

 

The Word of God was very instructive to me, and it also warmed my heart from the truth that is has shown me as I read it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  As I continue to learn from the book “Wild At Heart,” the Lord is showing me more and more of my fear and an idea of where it stemmed from.  The trip to West Virginia is going to be a test for me concerning this fear that I have, and I hope and pray that the Lord will not only see me through it but also teach me things that will have a life --changing event for me.  I know that I have been wounded from some where in my past that has caused me to have this unnatural fear, and that I am going to have to deal with it in order to become the man that God wants me to become.  I give myself the Lord for His service today as spoken of in Romans 12:1-2.