Heb 9 For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.

Jesus entered into heaven on our behalf

Christ entered into heaven on our behalf! No one ever done that. Jesus didn’t leave us some books to follow and and left us. He didn’t leave behind a bunch of spiritual orphans. He didn’t leave us with a book to follow only, he actually appeared before God to vindicate us. He’s got your back! Rejoice in the Lord, again rejoice!

As I was doing my reading in Hebrews this morning, I am struck with the words “Jesus entered heaven itself” and appear in the presence of God! How many times we get despondent thinking of our stress, circumstances, hardship, troubles and get bogged down, and some get depressed, anxious about life? Well, finally we have this advocate of ours, who happened also to be the Son of God himself, entered into heaven itself appeared before God on our behalf! There should just be no more anxieties, fears, sorrows, stress with Jesus, the God Man, as our best friend, our Lord, who fought for us all the way, and entered into heaven itself. Look, how many people have entered heaven?? No one. The priests in the world of early Judaism, old testament, merely entered the holy of holies once a year to atone for the sins of Israel and himself with fear and trembling. But Christ has appeared before God the Father boldly, courageously, on our behalf, and vindicated us by what he’s done on the cross, by dying on the cross, and thereafter being resurrected.

There is no better advocate than Christ himself. No one can appeal for us before God, plead for us to be accepted before God who is holy. No one. Only the God-man himself, who paid the price for us on the cross.

God prepared a body for Jesus

“Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,
    but a body have you prepared for me;
6 in burnt offerings and sin offerings
    you have taken no pleasure.
7 Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,
    as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.’” (Heb 10)

What a mighty demonstration of love and humility and submission that Jesus demonstrated. That’s why we have to be transformed more and more like Christ. Because God didn’t take pleasure in offerings but he is after our whole body, our life. It will take nothing less than a total touch of our humanity whole selves in our journey with Christ in our churches. It’s that simple, our time and energy and offerings will mean nothing if it doesn’t touch our emotion, our ambitions, our hopes and our love. It’s all in all.

We are sanctified by Jesus’ sacrifice of his body

8 When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are offered according to the law), 9 then he added, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He does away with the first in order to establish the second. 10 And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Jesus does away with all the offerings and sacrifice, and he offered up instead, ultimately, his own body as the ultimate sacrifice. Remember, in the old testament, Jewish people offered up lambs, bulls, pigeons, etc as sin offerings to God, as passover, Pentecost offerings to God etc. Now, the time came, God’s Son himself became the ultimate sacrifice that finally redeemed us all once and for all.

The fact that Jesus entered into heaven, not the lower court, not the high court, not even the Supreme Court, something even higher, the ultimate court in heaven, should get our attention. First of all, no one can get there. No one can hope to get there. But Jesus got there and vindicated us. He could do that because Jesus is really from heaven, and not just anyone in heaven, he’s actually the one seated on the throne, on the right hand of God the Father. He is himself God the Son. He emptied himself though he was God himself to come into the world for redeeming mankind (Eph 2:7)

Is there any reason for you to despair or look for your own solutions in the life of troubles, stress of exams, school work, stress of city life, the temptations of this sensualized world? No, you want to look at Jesus the one who entered heaven himself. The highest court. The only man who has entered heaven and appeared before God. He’s God Man.

With that, we can rest assured, Jesus has our back. Jesus looks out for us. He is our great High Priest. Heb 4 ^{14 “} Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven,^[a] Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.” Since Jesus ascended into heaven, let us hold firm to the faith we profess. We are not following some kind of wishful thinking, some moralistic god, but we follow a God who has ascended into heaven itself. So, lets hold firm. When the bible says let’s hold firm, it means it will be quite easy for us to lose grip of our faith if we don’t watch out. Let’s be intentional in the midst of dilutions by the liberal world, the sexualized world, the confusion from all sides, the tension and stress of life and jobs and schools.

That’s why Jesus is our shepherd

Psalm 23 ¹ The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
²     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
³     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
⁴ Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,^[a]
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

A beautiful psalm to close and encourage and exhort us all. The Lord is my shepherd, my leader, my master, that’s why I lack nothing. Sometimes, it doesn’t look that way, but you must go deeper than the surface. Many seems to lack, but deep inside they are rich in the world. Many rich people seem rich outside, but they are doomed poor inside.

He makes me lie down….He leads me…He refreshes my soul….He guides me….He comforts me….

Jesus, my God, my advocate, my shepherd. Amen.