I just returned from dropping a big old dead fir tree for a friend—then bucked it into firewood rounds. It fell right where we wanted. It was just over 24” at the butt. Now I need to get out to prepare a trailer load of lumber and roofing for another customer in Stayton…with plans to deliver tomorrow morning.
Both verses 14 and 16 contain “LET US” (not “lettuce”). They are calls to important action. I’ll quote those verses here and highlight selected key words.
“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, LET US hold firmly to the faith we profess…LET US then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
I see a noteworthy similarity between those phrases “hold firmly” and “our time of need.” In order to draw your attention to what I mean, let me raise two questions: HOW OFTEN DO I NEED TO HOLD FIRMLY TO THE FAITH I PROFESS? AND HOW OFTEN IS MY TIME OF NEED? Of course, the answer to both questions is ALWAYS—ALL THE TIME—CONSTANTLY—24/7. Well—there’s the similarity. This counters the dangerous notion that I can get away with being safe and sound in my faith on a part-time basis—that I am OK forever because I “received Christ” at a children’s Bible Club when I was 12—or that my time of need is only occasional, as when I face some unexpected crisis. Oh, I know that “the arm of flesh will fail you…you dare not trust your own.” And, yes, “we are weak, but He is strong.” But the underlying key to victory is to “be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power” (Ephesians 6:10). If I understand anything about the principles of life and the realities of spiritual warfare, I suggest that we be positively engaged not some of the time, but all of the time. The enemy of our souls never rests or goes on holidays. Jesus made it clear that “without me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Please agree that Colossians 1:27 is a constant all-the-time principle—“Christ in you (constantly), the hope of glory.” I think that’s the basis for Paul’s exhortation to “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
Let’s conclude by singing the chorus to I NEED THEE EVERY HOUR—and it’s not just every hour on the hour, but every second contained in all those hours: