Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. Hebrews 9:28

 

Life is full of its ups and downs, right? Good days and bad days. Times of joy and times of sorrow. Question: What would it be if there were no valleys, no shadows, no tough times? Can you picture a painting with only vivid colors, no dark contrasts, or varying shades?   Or living in a tropical paradise where every day was picture perfect? In other words, is it not the difficult that makes reaching the top meaningful and important?

 

Wise is the person who realizes that the brightness of the sunshine on the mountain top is exhilarating but nothing really grows on the windswept granite peak. Long ago, one of the New Testament writers addressed the very issue I’m talking about, how to make the journey through the valley a meaningful experience. I would encourage you to jot down the reference, Hebrews 10 in your New Testament.

 

He begins by driving a stake in the ground which he uses as a premise. It is the death of Jesus Christ, whom he describes as “a new and living way,” who even now is “a great high priest over the house of God.” Then he uses the phrase let us three times, each time urging action which helps us cope with discouragement and weariness.

 

The first “let us” is “Let us draw near [to God] with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:22).   This first word of exhortation and encouragement is good news. Got troubles, pain, or misunderstanding? Then beat a path to the throne of grace and tell God how you feel.

 

Many people feel that they are never good enough to warrant God’s care or concern. It is because of what Christ did that you can come just as you are and reach out for His help. I like the fact he says that our hearts have been sprinkled by the divine, which takes away our guilty conscience, and that our bodies have been washed with pure water, a picture of the cleansing work of God as I come to Him, something the Bible calls sanctification. It’s really the change that takes place as God takes His rightful place on the throne of my heart.

 

The second “let us” is “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:23). In other words, hold on tenaciously to the promises of God. Don’t let anyone, the devil included, talk you out of them by making you think you aren’t good enough, that God cares about others, but not about you. Those promises include the assurance that your sins are forgiven, that you have been brought into the family of God, that you are indeed His child, and that nothing or no one can ever separate you from God’s love. Hey, that’s quite an arm-load of truth, but you find all of that in Romans 8.

 

Hold on, says this challenge, because “he who promised is faithful.” That life-time warranty of your roller-ball pen may not be worth much, but when the Maker of heaven and earth gives you a warranty, you can be sure He won’t go out of business and will make good on His promise.

 

The third “let us” is “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25).

 

When people get isolated from each other, it’s like taking a burning piece of wood from the fire: the fire begins to go out. The reality is that we need each other for encouragement, for strength, for help. Make a note of Hebrews 10 in your New Testament and keep on plodding!

 

Resource reading: Hebrews 10.