Come, Ye Sinners Poor and Needy

“Let us strive therefore to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from His sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:11-16

Introduction

“Come, ye sinners, poor and needy / Weak and wounded, sick and sore / Jesus ready, stands to save you / Full of pity, love, and power // Come, ye weary, heavy-laden / Lost and ruined by the Fall / If you tarry ‘till you’re better / You will never come at all // I will arise and go to Jesus / He will embrace me in His arms / In the arms of my dear Savior / Oh, there are ten thousand charms” [1]

• We Need Rest (v. 11)
  • v. 11 – Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.
    • The idea of rest in the OT was the Sabbath. On the seventh day, God rested from the work of Creation. His people were commanded to do the same. That rest was to come into fruition in the Promised Land, but their rebellion against God messed all of that up.
    • For us today, our rest only comes from trusting in Christ. Those who have put their faith in Him as Savior and Lord do not have to work or try to save themselves through their own strength and effort. They/we rest in what Jesus has already accomplished and finished. But that is nothing new; it was the plan of God for His people all along.
      • Psalm 116:7 – Return, O my soul, to your rest; for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
      • Isaiah 28:12 – …to whom He has said, “This is rest; give rest to the weary; and this is repose”; yet they would not hear.
    • The good news here is that Jesus’ “works were finished from the foundation of the world” (Hebrews 4:3) – essentially “It is finished” (John 19:30) before “In the beginning” (Genesis 1:1).
    • And Jesus offers that same rest today – and we desperately need it.(Why? “…so that no one may fall into the same sort of disobedience”)
      • Matthew 11:28-30 – Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

• We Need the Word (vv. 12-13)
  • v. 12 – For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
    • The Word of God refers to the written Scriptures – the Bible – and to our God and Savior Jesus Christ. Some want to argue over which these verses refer to, but I would like to settle that debate: yes.
      • Jesus, the Word of God, has always been.
        • John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
      • The power of His Word(s) has, too.
        • Genesis 1:1-3a – In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said….
      • Thinking especially of Christmas (two days ago), we would have nothing without the intervention of the Word in our lives.
        • John 1:14 – And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
      • Everything in Creation literally hangs on His Word.
        • Hebrews 1:3a – He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power.
      • We do, too.
    • the Word of God is living
      • Jesus is alive – and so is His Word!
      • The Words of Christ captivate us, and it is by them we are saved (Romans 10:17).
      • His Word is more than a book. It can capture the conscience of sinners, simultaneously cutting them to the depths of their hearts and giving comfort and binding wounds of the soul.
      • (Matthew Henry) “Saints die, and sinners die; but the Word of God lives.
    • the Word of God is…active
      • Active is translated from the Greek word energēs. It means “effective; able to bring about”.
      • Everything that is written about Him is true. Everything it says He promised He will do. He is capable of everything it says He can do.
      • Through the Word, strongholds are torn down (2 Corinthians 10:4), the dead are raised, the deaf can hear, the blind can see, lame will leap, and the dumb will speak “the praises of the Lamb” (“Mary, Did You Know?)
      • It can – and will – absolutely obliterate the kingdom of this world and Satan, but the same Word builds up the Kingdom of God.
      • (Martin Luther, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”) “And though this world with devils filled / Should threaten to undo us / We will not fear for God has willed / His truth to triumph through us / The prince of darkness grim / We tremble not for Him / His rage we can endure / For lo! His doom is sure! / One little word can fell him” [2]
    • the Word of God is…sharper than any two-edged sword
      • It cuts both ways….
      • …piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
        • The Word sees through the lies of the world – through our lies. We cannot deceive Him. The written word lays our sin bare. We are fully exposed with nowhere to hide….
  • v. 13 – And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give an account.
    • Job 34:21 – “For His eyes are on the ways of a man, and He sees all His steps.
    • Psalm 33:13-15 – The Lord looks down from heaven; He sees all the children of man; from where He sits enthroned He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, He who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds.
    • This is utterly terrifying to me. He knows me – knows me. When facing the word, we find ourselves “naked” (not hidden; easily known) and “exposed” (laid bare; easily known).
      • vv. 12-13, Message paraphrase – God means what He says. What He says goes. His powerful Word is as sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything , whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God’s Word. We can’t get away from it – no matter what.

• We Need Sympathy (vv. 14-15)
  • v. 14 – Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.
    • who has passed through the heavens
      • This is the heart of the Christmas Story. If we are left with verse 13, all we have is bad news. We will not get the promised rest because our sin is fully displayed before the holy, righteous, all-powerful God of the universe.
      • (Paul David Tripp) “The beautiful news of the Christmas season is that God wasn’t willing to leave us in this tragic state. At Christmas we celebrate a God who is glorious in His abundant love and patient mercy. The glory of the birth of Jesus becomes even more glorious when it is seen through the humbling lens of the desperate condition that was the reason for His coming.”
        • John 1:14 – And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
        • Romans 5:8 – …but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
    • let us hold fast our confession
      • Because of all He has done and all He has promised, we need never deny Him or be ashamed of Him. He washes us clean from our sin. He covers our shame.
      • This phrase shows up multiple times in the book of Hebrews, but all those times wrap up in v. 10:23:
        • Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
      • We hold fast our confession because He is all we have got. But know this: if He is all you have, you have everything.
  • v. 15 – For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
    • The “Word became flesh and dwelt among us”, went through all the same junk that we go through, faced all the temptations and difficulties that we go through, was rejected and ostracized and mocked and beaten and hated. He gets us. He understands.
    • The internet has grabbed hold of a Rick Astley song and uses it to point out the foolishness and unfaithfulness found in human relationships: “Never gonna give you up / Never gonna let you down / Never gonna run around and desert you / Never gonna make you cry / Never gonna say goodbye / Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you”
      • We can “Rick Roll” all we want to. We can look to others and the internet and society and the government for sympathy, but they offer nothing. There is no world leader who is going to leave their ivory tower to walk in our poverty. No queen or king of England will ever leave Buckingham palace to walk the streets as a peasant. No president – sitting or former – will ever need a stimulus check or have to worry whether their rent will be paid or if can keep the heat on.
      • But the King of kings and Lord of lords “passed through the heavens” (v. 14) and became a baby. He traded the throne of Heaven for an animal’s feeding trough. He was the only begotten Son of God but looked at as a bastard by people He created.
      • He was not some “Undercover Boss” who came for a week or two and tried to walk in our shoes – He lived for decades alongside those who needed saving. And then He allowed Himself to be killed for the sake of those who shouted “Crucify”.
      • This seems like the saddest story ever, but His funeral was wasted because He broke death – He is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” (John 14:6) after all! He ascended back to the throne of Heaven – which belonged to Him the whole time – and He still loves us, still understands us, still has sympathy for us.
      • Nothing changed – or ever changes with Him. He has always been and always been there for us should we reach out to Him. Maybe it’s us who need to change.

• We Need Grace and Mercy of the King (v. 16)
  • v. 16 – Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
    • draw near to the throne of grace
      • The word translated “draw near” means to approach or devote oneself to something or someone.
      • Hebrews 7:25 – Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through [Christ], since He always lives to make intercession for them.
      • James 4:7-10 – Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.
      • (Matthew Henry) “A throne speaks of authority and bespeaks awe and reverence. A throne of grace speaks great encouragement even to the chief of sinners. There grace reigns, and acts with sovereign freedom, power, and bounty.”
    • receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need
      • King Jesus sits on the throne of grace. We can approach Him at any time.
      • We do not have to approached Him like beggars. We approach Him as His sons and daughters.
      • He loves us and cares for us. He wants us to come to Him. If we humble ourselves, repent of our sin, and draw near to His throne we are sure to find mercy. If we come to Him in our “time of need”, we are sure to find grace. We are sure to find these things because, when we approach His throne, we find Him.
      • And He is all we truly need.

Conclusion/Application

We do need rest, but we will only find it by trusting in Jesus Christ – the Word of God. We need sympathy more than ever, but we will only find it at the throne of the King.

We looked at Psalm 33:13-15 earlier to see how God sees the hearts of men; let finish out that chapter to find hope and good news for the future (vv. 16-22):

“The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.
“Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His steadfast love, that He may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.
“Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in Him, because we trust in His holy name. Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in you.”

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[1] “Come, Ye Sinners Poor and Needy”, Bob Kauflin © Sovereign Grace Praise (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing (Integrity Music, David C Cook))

[2] “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”, Frederick Henry Hedge | Martin Luther © Words: Public Domain | Music: Public Domain

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