A Throne for Needy Christians

Let's open our Bibles today to Hebrews chapter 4. Hebrews chapter 4. Title of my message this morning is A Throne, A Throne for the Needy. A Throne for the Needy. Reading the last three verses. Seeing then that we have a great high priest that has passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. In this letter of Hebrews, the apostle Paul speaks of the Lord Jesus Christ as our high priest 16 times. In the two verses that we've just read, he speaks of him two times as a high priest, but he adds a word only in this one place, and that is the word great, saying that we have a great high priest.

Under the law, the Old Testament, remember that was a typical dispensation, and by dispensation I mean the gospel. There's only been one gospel. There only is one gospel. Same gospel that God revealed to Adam and Eve in the garden after they had sinned is the gospel I believe, the gospel that I preach, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

But that old dispensation, sometimes called a legal dispensation, once the law was given on Mount Sinai, was a typical dispensation. And by typical, I mean there were many types, but Christ is the anti-type. In other words, there were pictures, many pictures of Christ. And one of those pictures, of course, was the high priest. Under the law, I would imagine the high priest was the most important person in the nation of Israel. Why do I say that?

There were other priests. They were all of the family of Aaron, but there was only one high priest at a time, according to the law. Other priests could offer sacrifices. They could offer peace offerings. That's what a high priest or any priest was to do, according to the letter of Hebrews, to offer sacrifices and offerings.

But there was only one high priest at a time. And I say the most important one because he was the only man who ever went into the Holy of Holies. He was the only man in all the nation. If there were six million Jews that came out of Egypt, think about this, only one man, Aaron, the first high priest, and then his son, and then his son, so forth and so on. Only one high priest would go into the holy place, and there is where the propitiation was offered, the sacrifice for sins for the nation of Israel. It was the only place that only once a year the high priest entered there.

When we think of Paul, the writer of this letter, here calling the Lord Jesus Christ a great high priest, not just a high priest, he did that quite often here in this letter, but this one time he calls him a great high priest. And I think of four reasons why we might call him a great high priest. First of all, the fact that he is both God and man in one person. All the other high priests, maybe hundreds, I'm not sure, but they'd only been man, only been man. But here, this great high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, he's both God and man. in one person. Another reason is the fact that his sacrifice takes away sin.

Those other sacrifices that the high priest offered never removed one sin. In fact, later here in Hebrews, you know, the writer said it's not possible. It's not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sin. There's no value in the blood of a goat. There's no value in the blood of a man, as far as that goes, unless he be a God-man, as the Lord Jesus Christ is.

He's a great high priest. Why? Because HIS sacrifice, and thank God for this, HIS sacrifice ACTUALLY takes away sin. If you know Him today as your Lord and Savior, your sins have been taken away. How? By baptism? No. By church membership? Not hardly. By trying to live a good life? Never. There's only one fountain in which a sinner may bathe and be washed white as snow, and that's the fountain filled with His blood, the Lord Jesus Christ.

A third reason that he might be called the great high priest is that the other high priests, they officiated, they did their work in a tent. At first, that's all the tabernacle was. It was a beautiful tent, but it was a tent after all. And then when Solomon built the temple inside the most holy place, the walls, The ceiling, everything was covered, overcovered with gold. It was a beautiful place that the high priest went in, but where does this high priest officiate?

In heaven itself. The very throne room of God, in the presence of God Almighty. And a fourth reason he might be called a great high priest, his priesthood would never end. Aaron lived for a while, but he never even made it into the land of Canaan, did he? He died in the wilderness. And then his son became the high priest, and he died. His son became the high priest. But this high priest, this great high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, he is made a priest with an oath. And God swore and said, thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. which simply means an unending priesthood without beginning or end.

But today, God helping, I want to speak to us about four words or from four words found in verse 16. Very simple message, I trust, and four words I want to call our attention to. The first word is need. The very last word, need. Before I speak about that, let me ask this question.

Who is it, according to these verses that we've read here, these last three verses, who is it that has a great high priest? Well, notice in verse 14, it's we. Seeing then that WE have a great high priest, and also let US, and I point this out because when Paul wrote WE and US, he included himself, didn't he? WE, the Apostle Paul, along with all other believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, WE, US, we have a great high priest.

Someone might say, do you mean to say that a man like the Apostle Paul, a man who had such a tremendous conversion experience? You know, people today, you watch the news, politicians, they talk about a Damascus Road experience. I mean, it's common knowledge that Paul experienced conversion, regeneration in such a dramatic way that his life was completely altered, completely changed.

He was a religious man. He was a respected man. And when he came to Christ, his whole life was turned upside down. Everything he had believed, everything that he had taught, From the Word of God he realized immediately that he had been wrong, that he had thought that the law had been given to use so that a man might earn salvation, that he might merit salvation by his works. And all of a sudden he realizes, no, the purpose of the law was never given to save an individual. The law is spiritual. The law is given to show us our need of a Savior. And the law typified, as I've already said, it was a typical dispensation.

There are many types in the Old Testament of Christ. Abel's Lamb, Noah's Ark. I mean, you just go through the scarlet thread in the window of Jericho. of the harlot Rahab. I mean, there's type after type, picture after picture through the Old Testament preparing.

So in the fullness of the time, think about the fullness of the time, all of these things had to take place first. But when all of these pictures were drawn, then in the fullness of the time, God sends forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, that He might redeem us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us in the fullness of the...all those things had to be prepared so that when He came, He's identified. If a person has spiritual life, he's identified, can make no mistake.

My point is, Paul speaks of a time of NEED, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Do you mean a man like the Apostle Paul? Man that gave his life 100%, it seems to me like, to God. He didn't hold back anything. His life from that moment on was Christ and Christ crucified. For me to live is Christ, to die is gain.

Do you mean a man like that would have need? Absolutely. What I'm pointing out is that God's people, even though blessed with salvation, living in this world, yes, we do have need. Some of the translations translate this affliction and time of affliction. It means the same. Affliction, time of need.

Think about some of the afflictions that Paul went through. 2 Corinthians chapter 11. He rehearses and, you know, he only does this because of the false apostles. He only reveals these things to show his faithfulness to these believers who were listening to these false teachers undermining Paul's ministry and apostleship.

But here in 2 Corinthians 11 and verse 24, of the Jews, five times received I forty stripes, save one. You remember the law allowed a person to be beaten with forty stripes. But when they beat a person, one, two, three, and so forth and so on, they always stopped on 39 just to make sure they didn't go over 40. Because if they went over 40, then the person being beaten, he could take the whip and beat the person who had whipped him. Five times, Paul said, five times in his life when he wrote the letter of Corinthians, He had already received stripes, 40 stripes, save one.

Thrice was I beaten with rods. This was even worse than the stripes. Very few people ever survived a beating with a rod. Most people expired. Once was I stoned. And we know about that in Acts chapter 13, I believe it is, or 14, when they stoned him at Lystra, drug him out of town, thought he was dead once he was stoned. Thrice I suffered shipwreck.

A night and a day I have been in the deep, in journeyings often, You look at a map sometime and just kind of trace where Paul went over there in Africa and Northern Africa and into Turkey and Greece. He did all in Rome. Most of those places he walked. He didn't get on a jet airliner and fly to these places. I suffered shipwreck three times, a night and a day.

I've been in the depth, in the deep, in journeyings often, in perils of waters, perils of robbers, perils by my own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city. And I remember one time they let him down out of Damascus, I believe it was, in a basket. They were determined to kill Paul, some of the Jews were, and so the disciples let Paul down in a basket on the side of the wall there, and he made his way. In perils among false brethren, in weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, Fasting is often in cold and nakedness.

And look at this last one. To me, this is probably the greatest one of all. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. The church at Corinth, the church at Ephesus, the church at Philippi, the church at Colossae, all these various churches that were that were assailed by false prophets and false teachers, after the apostle had preached the pure gospel of the grace of God there, then these evil men.

In our passage we read in Matthew chapter 7, the ravening wolves, they come in to destroy the flock. You know, the people today preach a message that tells and promises people, you come to Christ and all your problems are over. You believe in Christ and you will never be sick again. You serve the Lord and you'll be wealthy. You won't be driving some old rattle trap. You'll be in a nice limousine now.

That's such a false False teaching, isn't it? God's people, this verse of Scripture tells us, and yes, even the Apostle Paul, he included himself in the midst of believers who have need, afflictions in this life, in this world. Someone said, well, why didn't he, in this verse, why didn't he tell us when he says to find grace to help in the time of need, why didn't he tell us what that need was? Well, obviously, if he had told us one of the particular needs that he had, then we would think, well, that's not my need. That doesn't apply to me. No. No, that's not the purpose, is it?

Whatever your need is as a child of God, we have a high priest. We have a high priest. Whatever God's children may experience in this world, some may experience physical suffering. Some may experience verbal abuse. You know, a partner or a family member that just rails on you or mistreats you with their words because of your faith in Christ. Sickness, health issues, financial struggles, loneliness. There's so many different things that God's children experience in this world. that we would call times of need. And in a time of need, many times thoughts come into a believer's heart, insinuations.

Well, if I was a child of God, this wouldn't happen to me. I wouldn't go through something like this. If I really was a child of God, I wouldn't have this sickness or this financial loss or whatever. Again, that's Satan's insinuation. No, God's people down through the ages have always known need. When a person is saved, it doesn't mean that all of his problems in this world are over.

Many times they're just beginning. The second word is the word thrown. So need, that's the first word that I, call our attention to the word need, but now this word throne. We know that a throne is usually on a king or a queen's palace. Thrones are for kings and rulers and mighty men. But this throne here is the throne of God, which rules over all.

And it's interesting that in the Old Testament, I mentioned earlier that the high priest was the only man once a year who went into the Holy of Holies, and in the Holy of Holies, remember the Ark of the Covenant where the law was placed, and then over that, the mercy seat, pure gold with seraphims built into it, looking at each other and looking at the... mercy seat, and that's where the priest would put the blood to make a propitiation, typical, typical propitiation. It didn't really ever take away any sin, but it pictured how God would take away sin when Christ came into this world. But you know what else is true about that mercy seat?

That's where God dwelt. That was the throne of God in that Old Testament tabernacle and temple. Let me read a scripture to us from Isaiah 37 and verse 16. Oh Lord of hosts, God of Israel. Now notice that dwells between the cherubim. Thou art the God, even thou alone of all the kingdoms of the earth. Thou has made heaven and earth. It's a throne, but it's a throne of grace.

This throne of God in the book of Revelation tells us it's a throne of God and of the Lamb. You remember when John in Revelation 5, when he has a vision of heaven and seas, there's a book there, and it's bound up with seven seals, and nobody can open the book. And he starts weeping, and an angel tells him, weep not, for the lion of the tribe of Judah has prevailed to open the book. Well, the lion of the tribe of Judah is Christ, but when he saw, he didn't see a lion, he saw a lamb. A Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is both the Lion of the tribe of Judah, showing His power, His authority, His kingship, but also the fact that He is a Lamb, as a Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. It is a throne of grace we read here, a throne of grace. When we come to Him, our great high priest has opened up the way for us to come to God And we do not come to Him on a throne of judgment, but a throne of grace.

Grace. Let us therefore come boldly. And I always like to point out when I look at this verse or speak from it, this doesn't mean irreverently. To come boldly doesn't mean to come irreverently. For after all, he's still God, and we're still men. What it means, boldly means, to come with confidence of speech. In other words, we may speak plainly to our God. We may open up our heart to our God. We shouldn't be bashful in speaking to God, whatever our needs are, The problem is, our difficulty is in this time. Don't be ashamed to tell Him. He already knows it. But tell it to Him. Yes. Come boldly.

In Psalm 62 and verse 8 we read, Oh my people, trust in Him at all times. Pour out your heart to Him. For God is our refuge. You know, Paul wrote to the believers in the church at Philippi this wonderful promise, but my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

We have his promise to supply all our need or needs, but he would have us make them known unto him. Make them known to him. In fact, in Matthew chapter 6, the Lord Jesus, speaking about prayer, said, for your father knows what things you have need of before you ask him.

He said, well, if he knows what I have need of, why do I have to ask him? Because he said so. Isn't that a good enough answer? Because he said so. Think of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is God, manifest in the flesh, and yet He prayed. He prayed to His Father. Yes. Need. Throne. Throne of grace.

Needy sinners have a throne to come to, and needy believers have a throne to come to. And the third word is the word mercy. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy. Is there ever a day, is there ever a day in the life of a child of God that he doesn't need mercy? I don't believe so. We needed mercy when we first came to God. Our prayer in coming to Him probably was the publicans' prayer, God be merciful to me, the sinner. You know that word merciful there. God be merciful to me is actually God be propitious to me, the sinner.

People say, well, I'm just, you've heard people say this. People go into court, they say, well, I'm just going to throw myself on the mercy of the court. No, you're not. You may try that. They won't let you do that. You've got to have a lawyer. And most likely you're going to plead not guilty.

And sometimes people think, well, I'm just going to throw myself on the mercy of God. God's mercy is in Christ. Outside of Christ, don't look for His mercy, for you'll not find any. There has to be a propitiation. There has to be an atonement for sin, and that is, of course, His blood.

Look with me in I John, just a moment, I John chapter 4. Actually, let's read 1 John 2 and verse 2 also. 1 John 2 and verse 2 says, And he, he, Jesus Christ, the righteous, he is the propitiation for our sins. And not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. Someone said, ah, Christ died for everyone. No, Christ died for his elect. And they're scattered all over the world, both Jews and Gentiles. He died for his sheep.

But look with me, if you will, in chapter 4 and verse 10. Here in His love, not that we love God, but that He loved us, sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins, the atonement. You know the word atonement means covering. That's what it means. And we needed for our sins to be covered, covered out of sight, out of God's sight. It's only His propitiation, His atonement that does that.

But again, I ask, is there ever a day when a child of God doesn't need mercy? And you know the answer to that, of course, is no. We need mercy every day. That will only be true when we are no longer in this sinful body, this sinful flesh. That day is coming. Thank God for that. It's coming. when the Lord Jesus Christ comes again and gives us a new body like unto His glorious body. But until that day, as long as we're in this world, we're going to need mercy. Thank God we've got a high priest. Let me ask this.

Why do you not call me your priest? Why do you not call me Priest David, priest pledger, why do you not do that? Why do you call me pastor? Because that's what I am. I'm a pastor. I am a priest, but so are you. Every believer is a priest. Now we offer sacrifice, but it's not a blood sacrifice. That was done one time, and one time only, when Christ died and shed His blood. But the sacrifices that we offer today are the sacrifice of praise. We praise Him.

Every believer is a priest who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and made us kings and priests unto God. We believe in the priesthood of the believer, but we need a higher priest, and God's people have one, the Lord Jesus Christ. And it is through Him that we go to the Father, that even our praise, we come together, we sing, and our hearts are full of thanksgiving and love to God for what He's done for us. But you know, even that, that praise has to go through Christ to be accepted by God. It has to go through the high priest.

Why? Because with everything we do, sin is mixed with it. In my flesh, Paul said, dwelleth no good thing. Well, the last word is the word grace. It is at the throne of grace that we find grace, we find favor. You know, God, the scripture says in 1 Peter, God is the God of all grace. This is His throne, the grace we need to resist temptation.

Maybe on your job there's an opportunity if you Don't tell the truth, or you take something that's not yours as a temptation. Well, nobody's gonna miss it. Nobody's gonna know the grace to resist temptation. Where does that come from? It comes from Christ. That's just one example.

But how many temptations are there? The temptations to deny Christ. Peter, remember, he was tempted. Satan hath desired to have the Simon Peter, that he might sift thee like wheat. And here's this bold man. I mean, he's bold, isn't he? He always had a word to say, until that little girl said, he's one of them. No, no, no. And with oaths, he denied that he knew the Lord Jesus Christ.

We need grace because we're constantly tempted in different ways. We need grace to encourage us day by day. Sometimes we get discouraged, don't we? Seems like, well, everything's going like it's always gone. We get down in the dumps, as the people say. We need encouragement, grace, grace to help in the time of need. I learned this acronym many years ago for the word grace, God's riches at Christ's expense. Grace, God's riches at Christ's expense. May the Lord bless this word to us here this morning.

A Throne for Needy Christians

Sermon Transcript

About David Pledger

Comments

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

A Throne for Needy Christians

Sermon Transcript

About David Pledger

Comments

More from David Pledger

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by David Pledger

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book