Hebrews 7:23-28
Throughout our lives we encounter times when we wonder if we can trust God. Times of loss, of pain, of confusion, of questioning. At these times we may ask ourselves where God is. If God is so powerful and so caring, why did God allow these things to happen at these precise moments? In our lectionary text, it seems the Hebrews were asking themselves these same questions. They had suffered several waves of persecution already. They felt vulnerable and defenseless. They had even begun to lose interest in serving this God who now seems distant … remote … out there. In the midst of this, the author of Hebrews writes to encourage them to stand firm in their commitment, that their God is perfectly capable. And, because of our eternally available, always open, perfectly capable conduit to God‘s mercy, Jesus Christ, each one of us is gifted an immediate, intimate relationship with God, and we are introduced to the arms of God’s mercy, and the heart of God’s love.
As long as we have a personal relationship with God, there is never again an experience in life or death that we must face alone, no matter how great our fear, how intense our pain, how prolonged our wait, how profound our doubts. The promise of the Gospel is that God is there for us, alongside of us every step of the journey. Today’s text from Hebrews reveals just how much more prefect and available our path to God’s presence is because of Jesus’ presence in our lives at all times, in all places, and in all circumstances. Jesus, our high priest, is our friend, who knows everything about us, was tempted like us, knew what it was like to suffer like us, and was human like us. He is perfectly capable of making this journey with us once and for all.
Rev. Dr. Debi Powell-Maxwell
10/27/2024
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