Let us bless one another, Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.  May the great grace of God and blessing will be upon all the individuals and families that are worshipping in the church, in their homes, and especially out of state.  Right now in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, there’s also a wave of the cold so many people are not able to come to church.  If possible, everyone please keep your masks on.  

The title of today’s message is from Hebrews 4:11-16, “Let Us Approach God’s Throne of Grace.”  This Word “grace” means we have gained something without putting anything in.  We humans were created to live within grace; human beings were created so that we cannot survive unless we have the blessing and grace of God.  

Last week when we went through Hebrews, the reason the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years and could not enjoy true rest was because of their unbelief.  A person has to have true rest in order to have a taste for living.  Without true rest, just existing on its own is a problem.  How can we gain this true rest?  If you’re not able to find true rest, you’ll have to wander, looking for rest.  

People think they will be rested if they work less, so they try not to work.  They think the more vacations they take, the more rested they’ll be, so they try to take more vacations.  But actually, the less you work, the more depressed you’ll be, meaning the problem isn’t the work.  God created us so we can work; we were created to do God’s work.  You were created so that through your business and studies, you do God’s work, but the real problem is that we don’t have true rest.  

If we don’t have true rest, we lose hold of the essence and try to hold onto non-essential, secondary things, but as time passes, you realize that’s not the answer because from the beginning, you were going down the wrong path.  The answer for human beings is to be with God, and we’ll receive the true rest of God when we go into His rule and control.

In today’s passage, Hebrews 4:11, “Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience,” meaning that through faith and obedience, we gain true rest.

1. Words of God (Heb. 4:12)

In verse 12, it talks about the Word of God.  If someone has words of power, it means their words are influential; however, the words of God will reveal God’s power.  Even though the Word of God is a printed text, these are God’s Word.  There are so many words between the Old and New Testament, we couldn’t know and memorize all of it, and in today’s Word, it says that God’s Word is alive and active, but what exactly is God’s Word?

In Heb. 1:1-2, it says that God gave us the Word through the prophets, but in the New Testament, God gave us the Word through His Son, Jesus.  If you see John 1:1, it says God is the Word and the Word came to this earth as flesh and that’s Jesus.  In the Old Testament, what’s the Word God gave us through the prophets? That Jesus would come.

Before Jesus comes to this earth, the only way to enter God’s rest and to be with God is through the blood sacrifice.  Why does the Old Testament keep talking about Jesus?  Because human beings who have been separated from the true rest of God through Satan’s temptations have no way of going back to God unless it is by the blood sacrifice, the offspring of woman.  That’s why the Old Testament tells us that the only way to go before God’s Throne of Grace is by the blood sacrifice.

Why did God send the Israelites to the land of Canaan?  Because Jesus Christ would be born there.  People who did not have faith regarding the Christ, the Messiah to come, were not able to go into the true rest of Canaan, but those who did believe it were able to enter into true rest.  The entirety of the Old and New Testaments is speaking about Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the Truth. Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”  Jesus Christ Himself is the Truth, Jesus Himself is the Way.  The Old and New Testaments are speaking about this Jesus Christ because He has come to this earth as the Word.  We cannot meet Him, we only meet God through the Word, and that’s why the Word of God is living and active.

  1) God (Jn. 1:1)

    (1) Alive and active (Heb. 4:12)

How is it alive?  Because God is alive, He is fulfilling His Word, and that’s what it means to be active.  It’s very active.  People must be active. You aren’t active, and your words aren’t active because people don’t move, but the Word of God is able to move people.  Who is the most powerful person?  The one who contains the Word of God and relays it because God works.  

Who is the most foolish person?  The one who keeps asserting their own opinions.  No one is really influenced by that, and people wonder, “Why don’t people care?” It’s because there’s a God who is stronger than you. The Word of God must go into someone in order for them to have true rest.  

President Lincoln made a speech that whether someone is black or white, Jew or Gentile, they are all the same within Jesus Christ.  Those words were the living and active Words of God Himself, so that’s why they moved the hearts of people.  The Bible also said that Prophet Samuel’s words never fell to the ground, what does that mean?  The reason his words never fell to the ground was that he did not speak his own words, but he spoke the Words of God.  

The neighboring nation of Aram could never enter Israel because Israel already knew the strategy beforehand. It didn’t matter how they tried to attack Israel, but Samuel already knew, so as long as Samuel was alive, there were no wars, because Samuel’s words had strength.  Because they were not Samuel’s words, they were actually God’s Words.

    (2) Penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow (Heb. 4:12)

    (3) Judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Heb.5 4:12)

These Words of God penetrate, dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 

  2) Everything is uncovered (Heb. 4:13)

The hidden areas that we cannot see will be revealed when the Word of God goes in. It doesn’t matter how hidden a problem may be, when the Word of God goes in, healing takes place. Nowadays, we can do surgery on even the deeply hidden cancer cells. These are the Words that were given 2,000 years ago, before we could even do surgery. We cannot see our souls, and from a psychological standpoint, we don’t know what is in our subconscious and unconscious. All of the scars you received when you were too young to remember are still in your subconscious. 

    (1) Nothing in all creation is hidden 

    (2) Everything is uncovered

When the Word of God goes into you, it will penetrate deep and heal all of that. Especially the spirit, it is invisible. But when the Word of God goes in, it is living and active, and sharper than any double-edged sword. If you stab something with a single-edged sword, only one side will be broken, but if you stab with a double-edged sword, you’ll pierce both sides. 

    (3) Before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account

The Word of God is even sharper than that double-edged sword, which means everywhere it goes in it will be saving. The most foolish person is the one who asserts their own opinion. They won’t be changed, and others won’t be changed either. The most wise person is the one who contains the Word of God and relays it. That is the Word God fulfills. 

  3) Fulfill the Word

    (1) Sustain all things by His word (Heb. 1:3)

    (2) Abraham (Gen. 12:1-4), Joseph (Gen. 37:5-11)

God called Abraham and fulfilled His Word: “Go to the land I will show you.” Abraham followed His Word. At first, Abraham lacked faith and was shaking, but when the Word of God goes into you, that is the Word God fulfills. God called Peter and said, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.” God called Joseph in Gen. 37 and said, “The Sun, the moon, and 11 stars will all bow down to you.” God led Joseph exactly according to those Words. Joseph’s mother passing away was a problem, but it wasn’t a problem at all. Joseph’s older brother tried to sell him off but that wasn’t a problem at all. He was falsely accused and sent into prison, but that wasn’t a problem at all to Joseph.

How can it not be a problem when it is a problem? Because God’s Word is fulfilled exactly. May you restore your faith in the true rest.  If you don’t understand God’s Word, you’re going to live your walk of faith so diligently, but you will shake before problems, then the only thing you pray for is to avoid problems. That’s the weakest person.  Who is the strongest person?  The one who says, “It’s okay if I face problems or not. I am okay if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death or not.”  

What would you believe in to be so bold? I believe God will fulfill the Word He has given to me. If you don’t understand God’s Word, you cannot find true rest.  If you do understand, it doesn’t matter what problems come your way, you’re okay. It is okay whether you fail or you prosper, whether you’re cursed or not; your life will not change based on that. It’s okay if a dog barks or not, it’s okay if someone says something to you or not, why? Because I have God’s Word. I am within true rest because I believe God will fulfill His Word.

People are struggling so much to try to get that rest and they think they will get it if they have a lot of savings. Yes, of course you have to have food saved up, but the Word says God will supply all your needs.  The Word of God says, “Look at the birds, they do not worry about their food.” If you have the Word of God, you can enter into true rest. We don’t have any problems but we’re so terrified that we will face a problem. We’re afflicted again because of the scars of our past.  We don’t realize that we’re actually the ones at fault and we blame everyone else. 

The center of your scar is yourself, the reason the scar perpetuates in your life is because you think the other person is the only one at fault, but it’s actually your state that has no choice but to be scarred.  You receive a scar because your greed is so much, but you don’t realize it.  You don’t realize that you have such a competitive spirit that you want to harm other people, and you think that person scarred you, but if you receive the Word of God, nothing is a problem, because only in this is true rest.  The condition is faith, there is no way to please God without faith.  

Is faith all we need?  From faith comes your actions and works.  At this time, if God gives you grace, you will have more faith, and this faith is revealed when you go out into the field. Nothing is a problem to you because you are within the true rest of God’s Word.  If you don’t have that and you go to church so diligently, you’ll realize it’s not much.  You have the assurance that you’ll go to heaven, but you don’t know the reason you go to church.  There are many young people in America like that; they try to go to church, but the young kids don’t like it because the older generations are speaking a different language and have a different culture; it doesn’t fit with them, and the church says to give money, so they don’t like that either.  People want to make money, but instead of giving money, the church keeps asking for money.  The longer you go to church, the more the church asks you to do, so more young people want to stay at home and read the Bible by themselves.  

The expression with which they look at me is that they’re suspicious that I’m trying to make a sale with them, to try to bring them to church.  They look misfortunately at me saying, “I read the Bible at home, too,” and they’re essentially telling me to stop talking to them because they know the Bible and have salvation. Their words may be correct, but what is the one Word they were not able to discover in church?  There’s true rest here, and that’s what the Bible is talking about, but they’ve experienced everything other than that true rest, so meeting people is so hard, and they have to avoid meeting people. Because they don’t like people like that.  You only meet the people you want to meet, what does that mean? It means you don’t have strength, then later on, you’ll draw the curtains to be by yourself, and that means you lack strength.  That’s why you’re oppressed with panic attacks and depression, and in order to try to get rid of that, they try alcohol and drugs, going down this wrong path.

If they’re a nonbeliever, it’s almost rightful that they do that, but this is someone who goes back and forth from church.  It’s not their fault, either; it means that the true essence of what the Bible is trying to relay was not given to this person.  People come to church to fill their own greed, but because their greed isn’t being filled, they just leave, because they don’t get what they were greedy for.

The thing God truly desires is to give you true rest. If you have true rest and peace, it doesn’t matter what anyone says or what circumstance you’re in.  The people who experience this really develop a taste for this. It’s incomparable to what it feels like to do drugs because heaven is incomparable to earth. Drugs are so strong that they’re used to eliminate pain in surgeries; that’s why people are able to overcome their pain when they take drugs.  Alcohol is so powerful that if you drink alcohol, it numbs your brain. You have a problem but your brain forgets it, and that’s how powerful alcohol is.

If someone doesn’t have true rest and they face suffering, they have no choice but to go in that direction and get addicted; there’s no answer.  When true rest goes into someone, they realize that alcohol and drugs are nothing because you can’t compare heaven to earth. This is what you must find in church and worship.  

People who are not able to find this say “I’ve tried going to church,” and instead, they are pulled into the transcendental meditation of the world, because transcendental meditation is touching all the points that people cannot fix, saying they can fix it.  Transcendental meditation says, everything you think isn’t really you, there is a  real “you,” and you have to find the true “you” so let go of all your thoughts, that’s the true “you.”  The real “you” inside is like a god who is connected as one with the universe.  That’s transcendnetal meditation. The churches never talk about true rest, but instead, they talk about, “If you do this then you’ll receive blessing, your silver will turn to gold, and your business will do well.” People who need rest aren’t able to find it, so they go into transcendental meditation.

    (3) Moses (Ex. 3:17-18)

2. Jesus the Great High Priest

  1) Jesus Christ (Heb. 4:14)

We have the Great High Priest, Jesus Christ, Who plays the role of forgiving our sins.  

    (1) Sin, Death, Satan (Heb. 2:14)

Jesus Christ has broken down all the forces of Satan, sin, curses, and hell. 

    (2) Freed us from slavery by our fear of death (15)

We lived our entire lives seized by the fear of death, but we have been liberated completely.

    (3) It is finished (Jn. 19:30)

In John 19:30, Jesus said it’s finished. All the problems of my past, present, and future have been finished.  “Pastor, you say it’s finished, but I actually have more problems now,” it’s actually because you don’t have rest. If you go into the control of Christ Who has finished everything, nothing is a problem to you, because within the problems, you see God’s path. You won’t avoid anybody because all these meetings are blessings, and they’re the ones who will be blessed through you. Love God and love people, that’s the fulfillment of the commandments. You can’t do that so you fight. You avoid people because you cannot fulfill those commandments.  

  2) Hold firmly (Heb. 4:14)

Let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.  Hold firmly. Hold firmly to who?  Hold firmly to the One who has died on the cross to forgive my sins and is with me as Life right now. “I’m alive right now, what do you mean I’m dead?” Unless you receive God’s grace, you will not be able to understand these words. “If the word says this, do I have to pretend that I’m dead? I’m alive, how should I pretend that I’m dead? I’m alive and active now.” That’s what happens when the Word doesn’t go into you.

    (1) Master (Gal. 2:20)

Who is this “you”? That is the old you, where you are your own master.  The “you” who lived your life however you wanted with your strength and your plans has been crucified on the cross, so now it’s the spirit of Christ Who lives within you. Hold firmly to that, then He will move.  I’m a witness of that, and I talk about the Word of God, but I’m a witness.  I mentioned this previously, I’m very weak. Because I’m so weak inside, I have to really put on a front and pretend I’m really tough. My expression isn’t actually this mean; I’m just pretending to look mean and I use strong words.  You know when you meet an animal, you have to make yourself look bigger so it doesn’t attack you.  That’s humans.

If someone really doesn’t have much to themselves, but they’re full of a lot of hot air, they only expand themselves to protect themselves, and they’ll continuously be misaligned with God. This is their weakness and you must acknowledge their weakness, but because it hurts their pride, they don’t acknowledge it, and Satan holds onto people through their pride.

Hold firmly to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is your Master.

    (2) With us forever – Holy Spirit (Jn. 14:16-17)

As soon as you wake up in the morning, you remember that God is with you not only today, but for the rest of eternity, so you have rest for your soul.

    (3) Teaches and reminds us (Jn. 14:26-27)

The Holy Spirit is within me, teaching and reminding me of the Word.  It’s not like deeply analyzing the Word like you’re going for your master’s or graduate degree. You’re able to really deeply study and analyze the physical things like human relationships, politics, science, and to research things, but the Word of God cannot be discovered with deep analysis because it was written by the Holy Spirit, so the Holy Spirit must reveal it to you. That’s why the Holy Spirit teaches you and reminds you, so that even little children can understand because the Holy Spirit is with them as well. That’s what you must rely on, and that is the throne you must go into.

  3) High priest

    (1) Knows our weakness (Heb. 4:15)

This High Priest is able to empathize with our weakness, what does that mean? It means He knows all our weaknesses. How does He know?  He lived on this earth as a human being and experienced everything exactly like us.  Kings are unaware of the everyday lives of their civilians, but how can Jesus Christ know everything about us?  He lived exactly as a human like us, and now He’s seated on the Throne. At the Throne, He is continuously praying for our weaknesses because He has experienced all of it.  

    (2) Tempted just like we are (Heb. 4:15)

    (3) He did not sin (Heb. 4:15)

He knows all of it, He knows your poverty, your weaknesses and your scars, and He helps us with these weaknesses.  However, He was without sin. He was in the same situation as us, He experienced everything but He is sinless.  People do not know your heart. If you try to run towards people to get them to understand your heart, you will only be scarred. People only think about themselves; all they can think about is themselves. That’s how humans were originally created if they’re not with God.  But Jesus Christ knows everything about our thoughts and even understands our emotions.

3. Approach God’s throne of grace (Heb. 4:16)

Let us approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.  The grace we receive in our time of need; it’s something we receive for free, and we must have that grace. That’s how we understand God’s Word and have faith as well.  

We need to have God’s mercy, because human beings have no choice. Human beings are wicked but we are also so vulnerable and weak, so we need God’s mercy, meaning we need God’s continuous forgiveness and love.  Our very nature is constantly trying to reject God, to go back to our “me-centeredness,” and that’s the reason people try to accumulate a lot of physical things so they can exalt themselves.  That’s our nature, and the Devil uses that.  

  1) Jesus Christ Who helps from the Throne

    (1) Grace to help us in our time of need

That’s why we must receive the grace that helps us in our time of need.  God’s mercy and grace must come upon me, therefore approach the throne of grace with confidence. The throne is the place where God is controlling, where is that throne? It is invisible, but either way, it is the throne from which God reigns, judges, and receives glory, that’s where He reigns over us. 

    (2) Stake my life on mercy

    (3) Approach the throne of grace – Worship, prayer

The Father God is seated at the Throne, Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand, and the Holy Spirit is within us.  That’s how we go into worship.  Worship is worship, but it must be the worship where you listen to the words of the Holy Spirit within you.  That’s why in John 4:24, the true worshipers will worship in spirit and in truth. Don’t listen to the words of the pastor, but listen to the words God is giving you. That’s the only way for you to be liberated to go into true rest.

  2) With confidence

    (1) Child of God (Jn. 1:12)

Why are we told to go in with confidence? Because we’re children of God.  Children never have to beg in front of their parents, asking for food, but they speak very boldly, “Give me food.”  My daughter asked me to buy her some shoes that her friend has, and so I bought them for her. If I don’t buy those shoes for her, she will harass me with confidence, saying “Why didn’t you get it for me” because she’s my child, and we are able to go before God with confidence because we are God’s child.

“Give me grace,” then of course God will give it to you. Because you’re God’s child, you’re bound to receive God’s Word, you’re bound to receive God’s power. That’s how you’re able to have God’s plan as well, and because you have God’s plan, you’re able to know the future. That’s a child of God.

There’s no secret between the father and child; if there was a secret, that’s a strange relationship. What kind of secret would a father or mother keep from their child? They tell everything to each other. That’s the relationship between God and His children. “Why would I hide what I am doing from my servant Abraham?” He tells everything. And who would God give all His power to? His children.  Because we believe in God as our father, we have true rest.

My daughter has shoes, but she asked for more without being scared because she just had to ask her dad, but if she were not my child, she would have to figure it out on her own. There’s no problem in life we should worry about. God has promised to take care of me for eternity.

    (2) God fulfilled the covenant (Jos. 1:6)

That’s why in Joshua 1:6, God tells Joshua, “Be strong and courageous, I will give you the land promised to your forefathers.” God will fulfill the Word He has given. May you restore true rest through faith in that Word. Are you facing a problem? Without a doubt, God’s Word is there.  Are you in a difficult situation? Without a doubt, God’s word is there because Hebrews 1:3 says that God is sustaining all things with His Word. 

If you’re meeting somebody, there’s God’s Word there, and if you find the Word, you’ll realize the blessing is there, and you’re holding onto God’s Word in the work you’re doing. If you find that Word, the work becomes a blessing, that’s the right of a child of God.  It’s not about doing something, but you discover it. But because you cannot find it, you have to go before the throne of grace.  How do you go before the throne of grace? Through worship and prayer.

Because the Holy Spirit within you is one with the Triune God and the throne, you go before the Holy Spirit in prayer.  You come to your church and worship, then you have living worship in your field, and through prayer you go before God. God’s Word is always teaching us, that’s how we’re able to do our work and to live in this world in rest.

    (3) Disciple, healing, future generation (Mt. 28, Mt. 16, Jn. 21)

When is Jesus Christ returning? It says He will return when the entire world has heard the gospel, so relaying this gospel is God’s standard.  The content of the gospel is Christ: the Old Testament is about Jesus Christ Who has come, and the New Testament is about Jesus Christ Who has come, and when this gospel is relayed to all, then Christ will come again.

As long as humankind exists, they are centered on Jesus Christ.  This Jesus is the Way and the Truth.  When that Jesus moves me with the Word and the Holy Spirit, when I go into God’s reign and control, I will gain true rest. This gospel of Jesus Christ being revealed is God’s will, and that’s how people will be saved.

It doesn’t matter if you say your own words 100 times, people won’t be saved.  You may help them physically but their spirit and souls aren’t revived, the deep, hidden things are not revealed, but if you relay the Words of Jesus Christ, that person will come to life. The devil will allow you to do everything but block that. He allows you to succeed.  Satan is trying to make you drunk on success and unable to enjoy true rest, and he kills you with it, but the Lord heals us and raises disciples through us and saves the next generation through us. If you’re a normal believer, you’ll go in that direction. 

  3) Spiritual strength

    (1) Filling of the Holy Spirit (Ac. 1:8)

Then you must know the reason why you need the filling of the Holy Spirit.  We still have our hearts, thoughts, and emotions.  There are the states of our thoughts, hearts, and emotions when we look at the circumstance of the coronavirus. If someone in your family is sick, then there is a state of your heart, thoughts, and emotions in that illness. As you look at your failing business, you have your thoughts, emotions, and heart regarding it, even though you believe in Jesus.  That’s why we have to go into the filling of the Holy Spirit so the Holy Spirit completely controls my thoughts, heart, and emotions. 

Then regardless of any problems or circumstances I see with my eyes, the Holy Spirit of God will control my heart, my spirit, and my emotions. That’s why He sent us the Holy Spirit because we can’t do it with our strength, that’s why you pray for the Holy Spirit to control you.  

    (2) Working of the Holy Spirit (Ac. 2:1-4)

Then, the Holy Spirit must work in all the work you do and in all the people you meet.   By the working of the Holy Spirit, demons are cast out and Satan is broken down.  The work of the devil that leaves you in poverty and will destroy your business and relationships will be cast out.  It’s so simple, “God, give me the filling of the Holy Spirit to control me,” then your hearts and thoughts must be given into that in faith.  May the Holy Spirit work upon all the work and meetings I have.  

    (3) Change the stream (Field, culture)

It is with this Holy Spirit working that you’re able to change the stream of your family and company.  The main characters in the Bible are the ones who are able to change the stream of the culture with the sovereignty of God’s Spirit.  Otherwise, you have no choice but to be sucked into the culture and flow of Satan who is controlling the world.  The spirit of Jesus Christ is already within you, but I hope you and I will be able to go into the filling and working of the Holy Spirit, and go before the Throne of Grace 24 hours every day.

Conclusion

1. God’s covenant is fulfilled

2. Hold firmly through faith

3. Continue through worship and prayer

Prayer

Let us pray holding onto the Word we have received. God, give us the filling of the Holy Spirit.  God, we desire for the working of the Holy Spirit to be upon all the people we meet and the work we do.