Let us draw near

“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”

Hebrews 11:22 [KJV]

Pink Easter lilies

Lately, Easter promotions are everywhere in the supermarket. In the lolly aisle, it’s all about chocolate bunnies and eggs. In the bakery, hot cross buns appear in increasingly strange flavour combinations. In the deli, signs advertise ‘Fish for Lent’. And in the outdoor section, a large banner claims camping chairs are ‘Perfect for an Easter getaway!’

Food and a holiday weekend. Sadly, that’s all the word ‘Easter’ seems to mean to many Australians.

But I’ve been thinking about this question: what does Easter mean to me? Not just during the weekend itself, or in terms of Gospel outreach, or even my salvation, but in the context of how I live now. For example, how does the death, burial and resurrection of Christ affect how I relate to God each day?

Of course, it’s only through Christ, the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:10), that we can have any relationship with a holy God at all (John 14:6). But Christ’s work doesn’t stop there. What He completed in the past secures a glorious future and makes possible a present, close, ongoing relationship with God the Father. Some of these thoughts are brought out in Hebrews 10:22, “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”

“Let us draw near.” Pause for a moment and think about the enormity of this statement. Guilty sinners drawing near a holy God – the God who is “of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity” (Habakkuk 1:13). In the Jewish tabernacle, only the High Priest could enter the presence of God in the Holy of Holies (Hebrews 9:7). Even then, he could only enter once a year, and only after completing the required sacrifices and cleansings. But Hebrews 10:19-22 declares, “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus …let us draw near”. Because of Christ, any day, in fact, any moment, we can “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

Not only is it possible to come, but God wants us to come. Human parents sometimes have to say, “I can’t spend time with you right now, I’m too busy.” But God is never too busy for His children. James 4:8a promises, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you”. Psalm 103:13 adds, “Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.” The question then, is not whether God is too busy to spend time with us, but whether we are too focused on other things to spend time with Him. In the busyness of a Martha-like world, are we neglecting “the better part” that Mary chose, that is, to sit at Jesus’ feet and hear His Word (Luke 10:38-42).

So let us draw near to God. We do this through the reading of His Word, which records His love and will. Through fellowship with others who love Him too. Through speaking to Him in prayer. And through confessing and forsaking the sin that offends His righteousness (Romans 6).

“With a true heart”. A true heart is a genuine, sincere, pure heart. It’s the same word used to describe Jesus as “the true Light” and the Father as the “true and living God”. Jesus is “the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6) and those who worship God “must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24b). “A true heart” looks back to the cleansing of our hearts at salvation. It also reminds us that a close relationship with God is only possible when we prioritise holiness in our lives. Paul asks in Romans 6:1-2, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” We need to confess sin, knowing God’s promise, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). A true heart therefore, refers both to what God gives us at salvation, and something we maintain through righteous living that keeps us in close fellowship with our Heavenly Father (1 John 1:3).

“In full assurance of faith”. This phrase speaks of the Christian’s complete confidence in being welcomed by God. There is no uncertainty over whether we are permitted to enter His presence. “For through [Christ] we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father” (Ephesians 2:18). God has said we can come in, so we can confidently go in. As women, we often have insecurities about our relationships with others. Does she really like me? Do I really belong in this group? But we never need to ask those questions about our relationship with God. He doesn’t merely like us; He loves us with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). We never have to wonder if we belong to God, because He declares we are His children (John 1:12; Galatians 3:26) and joint-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). Through faith, we enter God’s presence, because “…without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Hebrews 10:22 concludes with “having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.” Here, the chapter’s theme comes full circle, reminding us again that our access to God is because of our cleansing from sin through Christ’s sacrifice. The verse contains pictures within pictures, drawing parallels between Christ’s work and the cleansing rituals of the Hebrew priests. Exodus 29 outlines two key elements referred to in Hebrews 10:22 that God required for the cleansing of the Hebrew priests before they could enter His presence.

The first picture, “having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience” refers to the way the priests were symbolically sprinkled with blood from the ram of consecration mixed with oil. The animal sacrifices pointed forward to Christ, “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29) and through whom “we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10b).

The second picture, “our bodies washed with pure water” references how the priests were required to wash their bodies before service at the tabernacle. It also points to baptism, which is itself a picture of the cleansing we received at salvation. Peter describes baptism as a ‘like figure’, that is, a picture, “whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 3:21). Hallelujah! How wonderful to pause and remember “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11).

As we think on the words of Hebrews 10:22, we are reminded that Easter is about far more than food or holidays. The death, burial and resurrection of Christ are the foundation of not just our salvation, but also of our precious, ongoing relationship each day with God the Father. So, “let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”