Hope Can Enter

The hope we have in Jesus’ sacrifice is enough to allow us to enter God’s presence…

Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection allowed us to fully come to God without a sacrifice. We are allowed to enter God’s presence at any time, with anything. Let’s study together to see how our hope is enough for God.

 Scriptures

Leviticus:

·      16:21-22

·      17:11

Matthew 27:51

Hebrews:

·      4:14-16

·      6:19-20

·      10:19-20

·      11:6

In Exodus and Leviticus, we are introduced to the laws of the priests of the tabernacle and later temple. The priest has always been allowed to enter into the tabernacle/temple of God on behalf of the congregation (see 4:14-15; Ex. 28:30). Traditionally, the priest was the one responsible for making the sacrifice for the annual Day of Atonement in the Old Testament (Lev. 16:21-22). On the Day of Atonement, a goat would be chosen to be the “scapegoat” for the sins of all Israel. This goat would be released into the wilderness, and the symbolism represented God’s forgiving and forgetting of Israel’s sins, rendering them new. In the following chapter of Leviticus, there is a law that forbids the people from eating “any manner of blood”, because life is in the blood, and the blood makes atonement for the soul (Lev. 17:11). Sound familiar?

In Matthew 27:51, Jesus gave up His spirit on the cross. At that very moment, the veil in the temple was torn in two, symbolizing that there was no longer a need for numerous sacrifices to repent to God. When Jesus’ blood was shed, it was an atonement that covered the entire world’s sins—past, present, and future—and gave us all a chance at everlasting life.

In Hebrews 4, we are reminded that Jesus, in that moment on the cross, was both the high priest presenting the sacrifice, and the sacrifice Himself. His blood was enough to cover our sins and do something incredible: allow us to freely come to God without the literal goat, oxen, or sheep sacrifice (could you imagine doing that every time you sinned?). Hebrews continues with explaining that our hope and faith in God is what brings us into His presence. To have hope means we are expectantly waiting for something from God. And to hope for God, is to believe that He will bring it to pass (11:6). This hope we have is what helps us to hold on, even when we are in life’s roughest storms (6:19-20). This hope makes us bold, because we remember that everything was finished when Jesus died on the cross, received the keys of life and death, and resurrected on the third day (10:19-23; Matt. 28:1-10).

The hope of everlasting life and blessed living is what continues to fuel us. This hope is sure and steadfast, and it is with this hope that we can come to God. If we have hope for Him, then we believe that He is faithful to do all that He said He would. We believe that He is there, and so we make our prayers directly to Him.

…So do not lose your hope…it is one of the strongest things you have within you.

-Sherry Amor