"Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." (Hebrews 6: 20)
Did you know that Jesus is representing you right now before God the Father, specifically at the Father's right hand?
I did not know this at all.
I believed that I had to fight my own battles, work out everything in my life on my own.
The New Testament could not be clearer:
"31What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? 32He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? 33Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. 34Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." (Romans 8: 31-34)
God is constantly justifying us, because Jesus at the right hand of God the Father is our mediator, our representative:
"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;" (1 Timothy 2: 5)
and
"22But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 23To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." (Hebrews 12: 22-24)
Jesus is a mediator now! Check out Romans 8 once again, and you find "justifies" (present active participle) and "makes intercession" (is interceding)
The Revelation of Jesus as my High Priest forever is a new concept to me.
Forever and now, not sometime later.
I often thought of this life as something that I had to live.
John speaks to this misunderstanding concretely:
"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him." (1 John 4: 9)
When we understand that Jesus did not just die on the Cross for our sins, but that He cut a New and Everlasting Covenant for us in His Blood (Hebrews 8: 10-12), then we can better understand this verse, too:
"1If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 2Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory." (Colossians 3: 1-4)
Christ is our life, not our flesh, in which we are dead to sin (Romans 6: 11, 14)
We see Jesus at the right hand of God, and we can trust that in Him we receive all things.
Jesus is not some ephemeral concept, but rather our standard-bearer helping us in all things.
Wow!
Just take some time to think about that, and stop wondering if Jesus is able to help you or not. . .