Remember the exchange.
The Bible promises that Jesus Christ will
return to this earth as the conquering King. Only those who live in repentant
faith in Christ will escape God’s judgment and live joyfully in God’s presence
for all eternity. God’s message is the same to all of us: repent and believe,
before it is too late. Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe
in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, and you will be saved.
Therefore,
brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of
Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his
body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near
to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts
sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed
with pure water” (Hebrews 10:19-22).
This was the
greatest exchange of all time. He died so we could live. Through the curtain,
which is the body of Christ, we now have access to the presence of God. In the
Old Testament, only the high priests could enter the Holy of Holies (the Most
Holy place), and when they did, it was with great trepidation. Because of
Christ,we can go to God personally...with confidence of His love for us.
“God made him
who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Some 2000
years ago, Jesus went to the cross and took on death. Through Him, a new and
living way was created for us to be reconciled to the holy heart of God. At the
very moment of Christ’s death, across the city of Jerusalem – in the temple –
the veil that separated the Holy of Holies from the Most Holy Place was torn
from top to bottom…from God to man. Because Jesus laid down his perfect life
for our imperfect lives, the barriers between God’s presence and us no longer
exist. We can be forgiven.
Now the church
of Jesus Christ has been commissioned by God to take the news of Christ’s work
to the world. Empowered by God’s Spirit, the church calls all people everywhere
to repent of sin and to trust in Christ alone for our forgiveness. Repentance
and faith restores our relationship with God and results in a life of ongoing
transformation.
But I want you to know that God is not finished with us. He
has only just begun. And if we take the risk and step out in faith, he is there
to guide our anxiety toward a fruitful endeavor in order that we may grow into
the person he desires us to become. I'm here to encourage you today, and to
tell you that you can face your anxiety, and God can use it in a way that
breathes new life into you.
Blessings,
Raj Kosaraju
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