Our Sympathetic High Priest

Our brother Jason Webb begins his internship with us later this week, but he's been gracious enough to be willing to come and preach to us tonight as Pastor Aaron is out in Mebane North Carolina.

! Romans 8.28 way that you know that God loves you and he's working all things together for your good, but sometimes you can get the feeling, sinfully so, that you're just a chess man on God's chessboard, and he has the same kind of feelings that you have for your pieces when you're playing.

God is way up there, and I'm way down here. Jesus is up there, and his work is done, but I'm here, and I'm in the middle of the battle. I haven't gone to heaven yet.

I'm unemployed. My family is full of delicate, unsolvable problems that you walk away from and say, I don't know what to even say about that.

I'm here, and no matter what I do, I keep on sinning. I keep on sinning. And I don't sin in lots of ways. I keep on sinning in the same exact ways that I say I'm not going to.

And I don't feel solid ground under my feet right now. I don't know how long I'm going to be able to hold on. I don't know how long I'm going to be able to hold on to Christ.

The fact is that when your work dries up, and your business heads south, and your wife is diagnosed with cancer, or you are so fed up with your own sinfulness, that you feel like you could just kill yourself to end the battle, then it seems you can't hold on to your faith any longer.

You need more than promises. You need assurance that there's someone there who is with you. Someone who can cry with you. Someone who can sympathize with you.

And so the question is, can Jesus sympathize with us? We need that sympathy sometimes. Hebrews chapter 4, verse 14 through 16 answers this question. Does Jesus care about me?

And it goes on and it tells us how, in the middle of all of our weakness and sin and temptation, we can hold on to Christ. We can hold firmly to Christ. So, you're all turning in your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 4. That's good.

Listen as I read Hebrews chapter 4, 14 through 16. Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are, yet was without sin.

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

These verses show us three things. The first is a requirement, the second is a reason, and the third is a resource. And I took those headings from Richard Phillips' commentary, but all the material is mine, so blame me, not him.

First, a requirement. Verse 14. If you look with me in verse 14, it's built around this command. Let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

The original recipients of this letter were under all sorts of pressure from all sides to abandon their faith in Christ Jesus. There was pressure from the Jews to come back to Judaism, to abandon their Christian faith, and to go back to the Old Testament religion.

And on top of the pressure to go back to the Old Testament faith, there was persecution, and there was poverty.

In Hebrews 10, verse 32, the author says, Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering.

Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution. At other times, you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property.

The people woke up every morning to persecution. They had left friends and family to follow Christ. And now those same friends and family had turned their back on them.

And they were facing all kinds of problems because of it. And maybe some of you know exactly what they were going through. You know what it's like to turn your back on the faith that you were born with.

And you've abandoned your old way of life for faith in Christ. And so now you are the oddball at the family reunion. And you're the one that they're always taking aside and trying to set straight.

And maybe you've faced more than that kind of opposition. You've been out and out ignored and belittled. And they've turned their backs completely on you.

And so you would say anything would be better than to be ignored and disowned. Well, these people faced persecution. And they also faced poverty.

And some had been stripped of everything that they had owned because of Christ. And so there's a lot of talk in our time about, in our days right now, about people's financial difficulties.

And we have not been excluded from the trial. Some of you know the pain and the worry that comes from not knowing how you're going to make ends meet.

Not knowing how you're going to make it. You're unemployed. And there's no hopes of employment in the future. And there's nothing but storm clouds on the horizon. And our author comes to us where we are.

And he says, hold on. Hold on. There's a great battle going on for your soul. And the one thing you need to do, the one requirement, is hold on. Don't let go of your hope.

Don't stop believing in Jesus. And so each of us, every day, faces trials within and without. Pressures within and without. And if we read the news, we have every reason to abandon our hope.

The economic professors tell us that we're in the worst recession since the Great Depression. And I don't know about you, but the elections didn't really go my way.

And so in a month or so, we're going to have a president who's committed to advancing the rights of women to selfishly murder their own babies.

And there's pressure all around, in school and at work, to not believe the Bible. They say you can't trust the Bible anymore. God didn't create the world.

And you're a fool to think so. And the winds of postmodernism has swept across our country. And truth has fallen in the streets. You can't even say anything about truth anymore because people just don't believe that anything is true.

That anything really matters. And we would be lying to ourselves if we said these things didn't affect us, that we don't feel that pressure. And in so many ways, this world is squeezing us and pressuring us and tripping us and trapping us and seducing us to give up on Jesus.

To give up on Jesus. And so Arthur says, hold on. Hold on. Hold on. We must hold firmly to the faith we profess.

So what does that mean? What does it mean to hold on to the faith that we profess? Well, it means not giving an inch to the lies that are told. Not giving an inch to the lies of Satan.

It means not giving up a moment. Our hope in Jesus. We're supposed to be holding on firmly. We're supposed to be holding on firmly. And that means holding on tightly to Jesus. It means not compromising his word.

When other people are contradicting it, we don't compromise it and kind of blur the details so it's more acceptable. It means joyfully giving up our possessions so that we might gain Christ.

And sharing his suffering. And becoming like him in his death so that somehow we can attain to the resurrection. And it means keeping our eye on Jesus when this world is putting on its body show and it's telling us, look over here.

Look over here. Look at this. This is better than Jesus. We keep our eyes focused on him. And it means throwing off everything. Everything. Good or bad. And running the race that's set before us with our eyes on Jesus.

And it means not retreating an inch from the truth or in our hope. God is calling us to set our ship and our sails against the wind.

And no matter how hard the wind blows, to stay on course. To just stay on course. And staying on course is a lot harder than it seems.

How many of you have heard of Athanasius? Raise your hand. Ah, good. Not very many of you. I get to introduce him to you. He was a bishop in Alexandria in Egypt in the 4th century.

And he's sort of a personal hero of mine. He's one of those people in the great cloud of witnesses that surround me that tells me to keep running. To run hard after Jesus.

And his story is very long and it's very complicated and I'm not going to get into it here. But let me tell you briefly something about him. As I said, he's in the 4th century.

That's, for everyone who doesn't know, that's like the 300s A.D. And at that time there's this huge debate going on in the church about whether Jesus is fully God or not.

And believe it or not, it wasn't the majority opinion that Jesus was fully God. Some and most people thought he's some sort of like sub-deity.

He's not quite as God as God is. But he's kind of that way. And then there's other people who out and out said, Jesus is not God. He's a creature that God the Father has called his son.

And so the minority report is, Jesus is fully God. And Athanasius was one of those who kept on saying this over and over again.

Jesus is fully God and it doesn't matter what you say about it. So he's the Bishop of Alexandria. That's an important position. He served as the Bishop for 45 years.

In that 45 years, five times he was exiled. For holding on to his faith in Jesus. He was sent into the desert and he hid in the tombs.

And with the monks that lived out there. And he was brought back. And then he was exiled to Northern Europe. Which is like Northern Canada to us.

It's like no man's land. And he was living there. And he was brought back. Five times this happened. He's kicked out of his city. Kicked out of his job.

He was forced into hiding. He was put on trial for murder and witchcraft. They said that he had murdered this priest. And was using his hand for magic.

So he's put on trial. And at the high point of the trial. When the evidence is all out on the table. Athanasius produces the dead man. So to speak. And there's the man.

And he has two hands. And so he asked. Well where did you get that hand? And they didn't answer. And you know what? He was found guilty. He was found guilty of murder.

Friends betrayed him. He was reduced to poverty. And wandering. He gave up his home. And he gave up his wealth. And he gave up everything. And so people said. Athanasius.

What is the deal? It's like you are against the whole world. And he was against the whole world. Because no matter what the cost was. To him personally.

He had to hold on to Jesus. And so Athanasius became one of those people. That the world was not worthy of. So God is calling us.

To this sort of determination. It's that sort of clinging to Christ. Where if it costs you everything. Then you count it gain. To have him. The Lord wants us to embrace suffering.

So that we can have Christ. But he doesn't do that. Without giving us a very good reason. To do that. And so this is our reason. Verse 14.

Therefore. Since we have a great high priest. Who has gone through the heavens. Jesus the son of God. Let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

Why should I hold on. When it's going to cost me so much. Because. I have a high priest. Jesus the son of God. And that's sort of an interesting reason.

And it's not very. Apparent. Well. What does that have to do with holding on? Why should I hold on. Just because I have a priest. But I think if you think with me for a minute.

If you meditate on. What's kind of going on here. You can see why this is a really good reason. So. Think with me for a minute. I have here a brother.

And he's being persecuted. At work. People make fun of him. And he's suffering. Because of it. And here's a sister. And she wakes up in pain every day.

And every day is like a waking nightmare. To her. Hour and hour after pain. Of pain. And so. Here's another brother. A sister. And she's scorned.

And ridiculed by her family. And she's standing for an unpopular Christ. And Satan is using that affliction.

He's using that pain. And that persecution. To say let go. Just let go. Jesus doesn't really care about you. God might love others.

But he doesn't really love you. He isn't really for you. He doesn't know. What it's like. To be you. He can't understand.

What you're going through. And so. What do these brothers and sisters need? What do you need? When you're in that sort of trial? Well. You need to know. That you aren't alone. That you aren't alone.

That. You don't really need. Those pressures. And that pain. To go away. You just need to know. That someone. Is there with you. In those pain. And in that pressure.

See the bitterness. Of that sort of trial. And that sort of suffering. Is that it makes us. Feel alone. It cuts us off. And we don't feel like. Anyone has ever felt. As bad. As badly.

As we do. And it just seems. So. God forsaken. He just doesn't understand. What I'm going through. So why should you hold on?

Because you have a high priest. Who is standing with you. A priest was one. Who stood with the people. And represented them. Before God. They couldn't go in.

By themselves. To see God. They had to have. A priest. Represent them. To. Plead with. Plead with God. To bless them. And so the reason.

That we can hold on. Is that we have Jesus. The son of God. As our high priest. So who's taking us. Before. God in heaven.

Who's taking our problems. Before. God in heaven. Well. It's none other than. His own son. And so things could not be. Any better. Things are as good.

As they can be. We have the king's son. As our priest. And the first. Four verses. Of Hebrews chapter one. Tells us. About the son of God. And what.

He is. He's the heir. Of all things. He's the. Final word. Of God. Everything was made.

For him. And everything was made. By him. Everything that you are. And that you own. Everything you participate in. Everything that you live in.

From day to day. Your work. Your spouse. Your family. Your house. Your job. Your mind. Your body. Your friends. Your neighbor. Your city. Your country.

Everything in this whole world. Belongs. To Jesus. He's the heir. Of all things. The son of God. Is the radiance. Of God's glory.

That means. He's the off shining. Of God. Himself. And everything. That makes God. So wonderful. He's the rays. Of the sun. He's the light. Of light.

And God of God. As we sing. And come all you faithful. He's the exact representation. Of God's being. Everything that God is. Jesus. The son of God is.

The son is infinite. And he's eternal. And he's unchangeable. And his being. Wisdom. Power. Justice. Holiness. Goodness. And truth. He's co-equal.

To God. And glory. And power. He's nothing less than God himself. And so. This is our high priest.

It's the son of God. That holds the whole world. Together. By his powerful world. Word. If we look up. And we see the stars. They're there. Because Jesus is holding them.

And if we look at our solar system. And the planets. Going around. And around. They're staying there. Because Jesus is holding them. Just by the words. That he says. And we look down.

At our bodies. And ourselves. And our lives. And why are they staying together? It's because Jesus is holding them. And so. We can hold on.

Because Jesus is holding us. And on top of all this. Hebrews says. The son of God. Made purification. For our sins.

The brutal cross. Is behind Jesus. He's already made a spectacle. Of all the powers. And the authorities. That opposed him. He has crushed. The head of the serpent.

And so now. He's victorious. So why should you stand? Why should you hold on to Christ? Because you're standing with Jesus. The son of God. You're standing with him.

God has appointed him. As our priest. And so. Is now. The time to let go. Do you let go. When you are being held on. So tightly. Will you give up.

On the son of God. After he has. Gained all the victory. When God is saying. This is my son. With whom I am well pleased. Will we say.

He's just not worth it. He's not worth it. I don't think I can trust him. The pain is too much. For me to bear. The cost is too high.

I can't hold on. And this verse is saying. You can hold on. And you should hold on. Because. You have a great high priest. And so that's wonderful news.

For every one of us. Because. None of you are standing alone. In all the trials that you go through. You're not standing by yourself. You are with Jesus Christ.

And so. He who is for us. Is greater. Than all those who oppose us. And Jesus is owning. Our wretched names. Before the father in heaven.

He is. Standing there for us. And God is happy with him. God is so happy with his son. And that means he's happy with us.

And he's for us. So how can we fail? How can we fail? With Jesus praying for us. And if you meditate on that.

For a long time. It starts to sink down. Into your heart. And you begin to realize. That these things. That I'm facing. They're not opportunities.

For me to fail. They're opportunities. For me to glorify God. And I can do that. Because Jesus is with me. But there's a problem.

There's a problem. With that description. That's really good news. But the author sees something. That's wrong with that. There's a problem. With that description.

And the problem. Is not something. Wrong with the son of God. The problem. Is something. In our hearts. And how we start to feel. About the son of God. How in the world.

Can the son of God. Who is triumph. Over everything. Who's holding. The whole universe. In his hands. And who's receiving. Praise. From the angels.

How can he know. What it's like. How can he sympathize. With me. When I'm weak. I'm weak. It doesn't take very much. For me. To fall down.

I'm weak. And I'm tempted. What can the glorious. Exalted son of God. Know about these things. And so the author. Sees that objection. And he answers it.

Straight away. Look at your. Bibles. Verse 15. For we do not have a high priest. Who is unable to sympathize. With our weaknesses. But we have one.

Who's been tempted. In every way. Just as we are. Yet was without sin. So here we come. To the incarnation. This is the Christmas story.

Why is the birth of Jesus. Such good news. It's because. It's because. God. Became. Man. On that day. Because the son of God. Became man.

And lived. On this earth. And he became man. In every way. That we are men. Except without sin. And so Paul said. What did Paul say?

He said. He was made in the likeness. Of sinful men. He was made in the likeness. Of sinful men. But he was without sin. And so if you were to put. Me. And Jesus.

Next to each other. We would look the same. Except I have sin. And he doesn't. We both had hearts. And souls. And minds. And wills.

And trials. And pains. And aches. And hurts. We're the same. Except he is without sin. So our great high priest. Became Jesus.

The son of Mary. And he walked through this earth. For 33 years. And he was tried. And afflicted. In every way. As we are. And in more ways. Than we can even.

Possibly imagine. And yet. Was without sin. Sinful people. Like us. We're used to living. In a sinful world. Aren't we?

We're used to. The filth of sin. But. This is the son of God. Who's become man. He's the king of angels. There is no sin.

In his presence. And so. In Plymouth. There used to be. This rendering plant. And. It smelled horrible.

If any of you remember it. And. Children. A rendering plant. Is where they take. Like dead bodies. Of animals. And. Like. Things that. Got ran over.

On the road. And. Things from meat. Plant. Packing plants. Or. I don't know. Where else. And they. Cooked them. And boiled them. And made dog food.

Out of them. Or something. The whole thing. Reeked. It reeked. So badly. And maybe. Some of you. Remember. What it was like. On a hot summer day.

And you're driving by. And it stunk. So bad. But you know. What was so surprising. About that. So very surprising. Is right next to that plant.

There's a neighborhood. And people. Lived in that neighborhood. And they woke up. And they lived in stench. They ate breakfast. And it smelled bad. And they got dressed.

And they watched TV. And it reeked. And after a while. What is disgusting. Becomes tolerable. And pretty soon.

What's tolerable. You don't even notice it anymore. So Jesus became man. And he moved into our neighborhood. But he wasn't like us.

He never could grow accustomed. To sin. And so he suffered. He could never just tolerate it. He suffered it. And there's no doubt.

That it was more troubling to him. Than any trouble. That we've ever gone through. So he knows. Something about sin. He knows what it's like.

To live. With sin. Does he know weakness? Does he know weakness? Yeah. The God man. Knew weakness.

There's 40 days in the desert. And he has no food. And he's hungry. And then Satan comes. And tempts him. Can you imagine. What it would be like.

For four days. For you. Without food. Would you be a little bit. On the edge. Would it be easy. For you to sin. Was he tired? Yeah.

We remember. There's this huge storm. On the Sea of Galilee. And all the disciples. Are up rowing the boat. Or something. And where's Jesus? Well he's in the front.

Sleeping. Because he is so exhausted. That he. Has to sleep. Did he know. What it was like. To be heartbroken. Yeah. He knew. What it was like.

To be heartbroken. If we go. To. The tomb of Lazarus. And we see his heart. Just breaking. And he's weeping. Did Jesus know.

What it was like. To be afraid. And full of terror. Like sometimes. We get. Well if we go to Gethsemane. And we.

Peer into those. That scene. We see him crying. And praying. And it wasn't the little. Silent prayers. Of our. Of a heart.

It was loud. Cries. And tears. And sweat. Dripping like blood. From his head. As he looked into this. Cup of God's wrath.

And it wasn't. He wasn't okay with it. It was the most appalling. Frightening. Thing. That any man. Has ever seen. Was he tempted.

To sin. Yes. He was tempted. To sin. How can that be. I don't know. But the Bible.

Says. He was tempted. To sin. In every way. As we are. Yet. He did not sin. So the question is. Can Jesus. Sympathize. With you. In your problem.

And the answer is. Yes. He can. For we do not have a high priest. Who is unable. To sympathize with us. In our weaknesses. We are so weak. And we are so tempted.

But we have a great high priest. Who knows. And can sympathize. Who's been touched. With that sort of weakness. And so he can pray with us. And pray for us. He can relate to us.

In our pain. And in our. In our temptation. Most of us. Know what it's like. To fight temptation. And sin.

At least. A little bit. We've given it something. But none of us. Have given it. Everything. None of us have died. Rather than sin.

So we don't really know. How powerful temptation. Can be. Because we're like people. On a tight rope. You know. Just a little push. And there we go.

But Jesus. Was like an iron pillar. Whatever force. Temptation could have. It gave him. We fall. When temptation. Is at. 70% of its strength.

Or 50. Or 20. Or 1. Or we don't even need to sin. Or we don't even need to be tempted. And we fall into sin. But Christ knows. The full power.

Of Satan's temptations. And so he can have sympathy with us. And that's. Very good news. It's very good news. And it's my hope.

And my prayer. That as you think about these things. And as you walk into Monday. You can think that Jesus. Is with me. And he knows. What I'm going through.

And so I can hold. Firmly to the faith. That I profess. I can speak. To that co-worker. About Jesus. I can evangelize. Because.

Jesus knows. What it's like. To suffer. To speak the truth. But we have one final point. And it's a little bit shorter. Than the others. And it's. The resource.

We've seen a requirement. We've seen a reason. And now a resource. Verse 15 says. Verse 16 says. Let us then approach.

The throne of grace. With confidence. So that we may receive mercy. And find grace. To help us. In our time of need. There's only one.

Sensible thing. To do. If we are weak. And we are tempted. And we have a great high priest. Like Jesus. The son of God. And that is to pray. That's the only thing.

That we. Can do. And that's the only thing. That makes sense. To do. So let's talk about. Just some of the nitty gritty things. About this verse. So that we can have. Its full meaning.

In our heads. It says. Let us approach. The throne of grace. Well what does that mean? What's this throne of grace? Well. It's where God rules.

Graciously. For his people. It's where God. Sovereignly controls. All things. For the good. Of his people. So we don't come. To a throne.

Of judgment. When we pray. You don't come. To a throne. Of judgment. When you pray. You don't come. To a throne. Of tyranny. Of a. Of a God.

Who does not care. Who has no feelings. Who only wants. His way. You don't come. To a throne. Of indifference. Where. What you say.

Just doesn't matter. You come. To a father. Who is gracious. Who deals. Graciously. With you. And he's. Graciously.

Disposed. Towards you. I'm. Graciously. Disposed. Towards my children. Maybe too much. If they ask. For candy. I'm like. Okay. You can have candy.

Not all the time. I'm. Better. Dad. Than that. Um. But if they ask. Something of me. If I have the power. And if it's in their best interest. I will give it to them.

Every time. And if. I'm evil. And I know how to give good gifts. To my children. How much more. Does the father in heaven. Who's. Without sin.

Who doesn't have any. Hardness of heart. How much more will he give good gifts. To his children. But there's a connection. Between Jesus.

The son of God. And my problems. And that. The rope. That ties those two things together. Is prayer. So what should we think.

About prayer. Because that's what we're talking about. We're talking about. Approaching the throne of grace. And we do that in prayer. What should we think about prayer? Well we should picture ourselves.

Entering. The stately. Throne room. Of God. And on the throne of God. Is an indulgent father. Who loves to give. Give good gifts.

To his children. And beside him. On that throne. Is our high priest. His son. The son of God. And he's our advocate. He's the one.

Who will. Take our message. To God the father. For us. And on his hands. And on his. These are his hands. And on his feet. He. Their scars.

In his heart. There's a thousand memories. Of what it's like. To be weak. And tempted. And hungry. And what it's like. When people talk.

Badly about you. And ridicule you. And violently. Persecute you. And he knows. What it is. To be afraid. And he remembers that. And so. When you come to him.

He understands. And he can sympathize. With you. And he says. I'm glad to see. That you're here. You need to be here. So if we have a high priest.

Like Jesus. The son of God. Then the only sensible thing to do. Is to go to that throne of grace. With confidence. And that word confidence. Means. Bold.

Frankness. That you are admitting. Everything that you are. And all your problems. And. You still are coming. It doesn't mean that you're flippant.

It means that you're reverent. But you have. An expectant attitude. You expect. To be answered. And brothers and sisters.

When you pray. You should really expect. To be answered. When you're sick. When you're in trial. You should expect. To be answered.

When you pray. So what are we looking for? What are we looking for? When we approach. This throne of grace. Are we looking for all of our trials.

To go away? Are we looking for. Our sickness. To go away? Sometimes. And it's okay. To ask about those things. But what we're asking for. Is grace. And mercy.

For our. Need. For our time of help. This throne of grace. Is good. For finding grace. And receiving mercy. It's good.

For finding grace. And receiving mercy. Are those two things. The same thing. Is this. Just the author. Repeating himself. And I don't think so. They're not quite.

The same thing. When I'm under. A great trial. I am very much. Tempted to sin. And I assume. It's the same with you. When you're sick. And maybe you're not.

Used to being sick. I'm not used to being sick. So when I have the flu. It's pretty bad. I turn into a big. Sinful baby. And just the slightest things. Can just get me all.

Riled up. When I'm under trial. Temptation has great power. And so we need grace. To keep from falling.

We need grace. To make it through that trial. And we need mercy. So that God would forgive us. When we fall. Because we are weak.

This past Lord's Day. We were going to go. To my parents house. For lunch. And so. We went out. To get into the car.

And the back tire. Was flat. And. It's 20 below. With wind chill. And I sit. And I have a flat tire. So. I'm the optimist.

I say. I'm going to change the tire. And we'll. Go to my parents house. And we'll get the. The new tire on tomorrow. The spare will be fine. It's cold. But it's no big deal. I can change a tire.

No problem. Usually I can. So I take off one lug nut. And I take off. The second lug nut. And I take off the third. And the fourth is stuck.

So I go to the fifth. And the fifth is stuck. So I go back to the fourth. And I go back and forth. And I raise the car up and down. And I turn the tire. And. Four and five are still stuck.

They're completely stuck. And. So what proceeded from that. Is a lot of straining. And kicking. And like. I'm not kicking in anger. I'm just trying to kick this.

Tire iron. And. So what happens. Well the nuts are just ruined. They're ruined. My tire's flat. I can't get my old tire off.

And. The nuts are just totally stripped out. So now my tire iron won't even stay on. And by this time it's 135 below. And.

So I go inside. And my sweet children are there talking to me. And my wife is asking me. What am I. What are you going to do? And in this time I need grace.

Grace to be sweet. To my wife. When I don't feel very sweet inside. And I need help. So I don't turn really mean and sarcastic. Like it can be with my children.

And I need more grace. And more mercy. Because I've already had a sinful. Proud. I felt like I was better than this trial. I didn't deserve it.

My complaining spirit. So grace is for coping with the trial. And mercy. Is for finding forgiveness. When we sin in our weakness. And the throne of grace is where we find both.

We find both there. Jesus died. That we might have forgiveness of sin. But Jesus lives. So that we can find grace. In our hour of need.

In our time of need. And so what should we do? We should pray. When should we pray? And if you piously say all the time.

Then I would ask. Well why don't you? Don't you feel. Your need. And so many times we feel. We don't need. God's help. And so we don't pray.

So. Let's repent of those things. And let us pray. When the time. Is. When we have. A time of need. So we stand on the edge of a new year.

Christmas is past now. Before we meet again. It will be January 1st. And it will be the new year. And we look over. At this whole last year. And we could say.

You know what? Jesus has made. Has got me through the last year. And we can raise the Ebenezer. And say. Hitherto by thy help I've come. And we look at this year.

And what is going to make. What is going to help us. To get through next year. And it's just this. That we have a high priest. Who is sympathetic with us. And who is praying for us.

And so we have proved. This past year. That we don't live by bread alone. But we live by every word. That comes from the mouth of God. And this coming year.

We are going to prove it again. So the question is. Will you let go of Jesus. This coming year. When your trial comes. When unemployment comes. When sickness comes.

When family problems come. Will you let go. And when you sin. For the thousandth time. In the same exact way. Will you.

Still hold. Firmly. To the faith that you profess. So. The word of God says you can. Because you have a sympathetic.

High priest. Jesus. The son of God. And he's able to sympathize. With us in every way. And so we can pray with boldness.

And let's do that. Let's pray with boldness. And let us treasure Jesus this year. The only reason we got through last year. Was because of him. And so.

Let's. Let's treasure him this year. Let's pray. Our heavenly father. We.

Thank you for your son. We do not stand alone. But we stand with him. We do not have our own. Merit or righteousness.

But we have his. And. In that we greatly rejoice. We thank you that. He did not only die.

But he was raised. For us. And now he is at the right hand. Of the father. And interceding for us. Father help us to trust in him.

Help us to hold on to him. When everything about us. And around us. Is telling. Us to let go. Father I pray that you. Would.

Impress this word upon us. That tomorrow. When we face. Whatever we'll face. Will you. Give us grace. To remember. That we have a faithful high priest.

And when we sin. Will you remind us. That we have a faithful high priest. Who knows. The power of temptation. And can sympathize with us.

In our weakness. Father I thank you. That you're graciously disposed. Towards us. And that we can expect you. To answer us. And so we are looking forward.

To hearing. Your answers. And I am looking forward. To hearing your answers. Will you help us. As we go on our way. And will you bless us.

And keep us. In Jesus name I pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.