Hebrews 10:19-25 (NMB NT) Seeing, brethren, that by the means of the blood of Jesus we may be bold to enter into that holy place, 20 by the new and living way that he has prepared for us through the veil (that is to say, by his flesh), 21 and seeing also that we have a high priest who is ruler over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart, in full faith, sprinkled in our hearts from an evil conscience, and washed in our bodies with pure water. 23 And let us keep the profession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another, to encourage to love and to good works. 25 And let us not forsake the fellowship that we have among ourselves, as the manner of some is, but let us exhort one another, and that so much the more because you see that the day draws near.
V19 “Seeing, brethren, that by the means of the blood of Jesus we may be bold to enter into that holy place…” The sacrificial blood of animals cannot take away (forgive, paid the penalty for committing sins)–Hebrews 10:4. The sacrificial blood of the Lord Jesus is fully able to take away sins. Upon faith in the Lord Jesus our sins are so forgiven that we can enter the holy of Holies to pray and enjoy fellowship with God. There is no need for a Levitical priest any longer, and we have become priests, both women and men. See Revelation 1:6 (MKJV) “and made us kings and priests to God and His Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
V20 “…by the new and living way that he has prepared for us through the veil (that is to say, by his flesh)…” We do not enter the Holy of Holies by means of the death of an animal to offer blood. We now have a living way. He = Jesus our High Priest. The veil which separated the Holy from the Holy of Holies is now gone. We just enter in. We enter in through Jesus, the living veil. The Greek word for “prepared” is (G1457) ἐγκαινίζω egkainízō, which means to inaugurate. He was the first, then we are allowed. What was illegal is now legal through Jesus, who inaugurated the way we can enter.
V21 “…and seeing also that we have a high priest who is ruler over the house of God…” The new High Priest, Jesus, is not only mediator, High Priest, etc., He is also the ruler of the house (family) of God (all believers in Jesus). See Ephesians 1:22, Ephesians 5:23, and Colossians 1:22. He is also the ruler of the universe (Colossians 2:10).
V22 “…Let us draw near with a true heart, in full faith, sprinkled in our hearts from an evil conscience, and washed in our bodies with pure water.” To draw near means to come close with sincere motives and actions. The heart is the real person, the soul/spirit. We must come with faith. Our hearts have been sprinkled from an evil conscience. This refers to sprinkling in the Old Testament sacrificial system. In Leviticus, sprinkling is mentioned in the verse to purifying the flesh that has been healed of leprosy. See Ezekiel 36:25 and 1 Peter 1:2. Our bodies washed refers to the Old Testament requirement to wash physical dirt and surface impurities off the flesh. We can now serve our High Priest, Prophet, and King properly.
Vincent’s Word Studies: “This qualification for a right approach to God is stated typologically. As the priests were sprinkled with the sacrificial blood and washed with water before ministering, so do you who have now the privilege and standing of priests in approaching God, draw near, priestlike, as sharers in an economy which purges the conscience (Heb 9:14), having your consciences purged. Your own hearts must experience the effects of the great sacrifice of Christ, – pardon, moral renewal, deliverance from a legal spirit. On the priesthood of believers see 1 Pe 2:5, 1 Pe 2:9; Exo 19:6; Isa 61:6. This idea is dominated in our epistle by that of Christ’s priesthood; but it is not excluded, and is implied throughout.”
V23 “And let us keep the profession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” Profession is our oral and living statement of Christian faith. Our hope is in our full and future deliverance from death, evil, and the curse of God brought by sin. This hope: 1) comes from Scripture (Psalm 119:74), 2) comes from Jesus’s resurrection and promise for our resurrection (Acts 24:15, 3) comes from our faith bringing joy and peace (Romans 15:13), and 4) comes from the promise of Jesus’s return (1 John 3:3). We all waver at times which diminishes our hope, but Jesus is always faithful even if we do waver, because He promised, and He is faithful.
V24 “And let us consider one another, to encourage to love and to good works” Christians are a family, so we must help, encourage, pray for, support our fellow believers in love and good works. Good works are always to glorify God and bring His message to the world as they see us live the faith.
V25 “And let us not forsake the fellowship that we have among ourselves, as the manner of some is, but let us exhort one another, and that so much the more because you see that the day draws near.” Because we are a family, we need each other. To know each other’s needs, we must have fellowship with each other. Some think they do not need to go to church, but we need each other (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). We can worship God anywhere even alone, but we need the physical presence of others to exhort (encourage, warn, stand beside those who are hurting or doubting).
As we get nearer the return of Jesus (Rapture), we need fellowship even more. The “Day” refers to the Day of the Lord, a special time of God’s intervention in human history especially Israeli history. As we see everything around us, we know something special is happening. Most Christians sense that the Rapture is approaching, so we must meet faithfully and especially so as we see that Day getting closer.
We learn:
- We need to boldly enter the throne room of God with our prayers.
- Jesus is lord of the church (believers), so what He says is God’s will.
- Our hearts and consciences have been cleansed by the blood of Christ.
- We do not need to feel guilty any longer.
- Our hope is our heavenly hope.
- We need each other and our mutual love.
John 13:35 NKJV – “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Oneness in faith doesn’t refer to agreeing on the lowest common denominator, as in everyone calling themselves a Christian are Christian.
It does mean:
(Common Man’s Reference Bible Notes) Love for one’s fellowlabourers in the Lord does not take precedence over one’s love for the word of God, true doctrine, and God Himself (John 14:23; 1 Cor 8:3).
The character traits of God’s love and our love are: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
“Love is very patient and kind; love is not envious; love doesn’t brag about itself, is not haughty, doesn’t behave improperly, is not self-seeking; love isn’t easily aggravated, doesn’t keep a list of wrongs, doesn’t rejoice in injustice, but rejoices with the truth, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, calmly endures all things, love never falls away.”