SATURDAY February 21, 2026

Drawing Near to God

Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
Hebrews 10:19-22

Paul the Apostle shared with believers that they were now able to draw near to God. They were given a gracious invitation to enter into the Holiest Place. We have been granted such an awesome privilege. As Christians, we also have other privileges, and Paul will discuss them with us throughout verses 19-22.

The Gospel message Paul taught was very different from what the Jews adhered to––the Law. On the Day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter preached the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ: ...there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.... Then those who gladly received his [Peter’s] word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them (Acts 2:5, 41).

Now Paul’s words helped the Jews to understand that the old rituals were just shadows of things to come. They now knew that Jesus, their Messiah, had come and shed His blood to open a new and living way to reach God. Jesus had become the ultimate sacrifice for sin:

Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood... (Romans 3:24-25 NLT).

Know this: If you are a child of God, and you have repented of your sin and asked Jesus to forgive you, then He has cleansed and washed you:

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Does that now mean we are perfect? No. As Christians, we do sin, but we can draw near to Jesus Christ to confess our sins and to be cleansed.

It does not spoil your happiness to confess your sin.
The unhappiness is in not making the confession.
~C. H. Spurgeon~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!