Introduction

How much does prayer cost?

And who is able to pay the price?

Milton Vincent writes in A Gospel Primer:

“God is radically committed to my life of prayer. He shed the blood of His Son so that I might be cleansed and rendered fit (Ephesians 1:7) to stand before Him in love. He also permitted the brutal rending of His Son so that I might now have a way into the Holy Place through the torn flesh of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19–20)… How can I not feel the infinite sincerity of these invitations, especially when considering the painful lengths that God endured so that I might enter His presence with prayer?”

Draw near He says in Hebrews 4:16 “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.”

Enter in He says in Hebrews 10:19–20 “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,”

1 Thessalonians 5:17 simply says “pray without ceasing,”.

These are not reluctant invitations. They are not invitations from a God who merely tolerates our presence. They are invitations purchased by the blood of Christ Himself.

That raises an important question:

What did it cost to open that way?

The Cost of Admission

Hebrews answers the question.

Hebrews 4:14 “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.”

Under the Old Covenant, the high priest entered the Most Holy Place only once each year on the Day of Atonement. Passing through the outer court, then the Holy Place, and finally into the Holy of Holies, he carried the blood of sacrifice before God on behalf of the people.

Jesus passed through the heavens.

He did not merely enter an earthly sanctuary made with hands. He “passed through the heavens” into the very presence of the Father.

His sacrifice was not the blood of bulls and goats.

He offered His own blood.

The One who welcomes us into God’s presence is not merely sympathetic because He is God.

He is sympathetic because He became man.

Hebrews 4:15 “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.”

Jesus knows what it is to be weary.

He knows what it is to be misunderstood.

He knows rejection, sorrow, loneliness, hunger, exhaustion, and temptation.

Yet unlike us, He never sinned.

Even though he was tempted in every way as we are, he never sinned and he has passed through the heavens into the very throne room of God to be our mediator

That means when we come to Him, we are not approaching someone who looks down on struggling sinners with impatience.

We come to One who perfectly understands our weakness while remaining perfectly holy.

If we had a high priest who was cold and heartless; who simply performed the external duties of his office without entering the sympathies of those who came to seek for pardon; who had never experienced any trials, and who felt himself above those who sought his aid,

There would be no motivation, no desire, to approach a High Priest who looked down on us because we struggle, who could not understand what we are going through.

It is our unwavering confidence that Jesus Christ truly is who He claimed to be—the incarnate Son of God, crucified for sinners, risen from the dead, ascended into heaven, and now reigning as our Great High Priest and coming back one day in victory to claim His own.

If Christ really is Lord

That Christ really rose from the dead

If Christ truly sits at the Father’s right hand…

If He truly intercedes for His people…

If He truly opened the way into God’s presence…

Then why would we neglect prayer?

The cost of this access? The Son of God laid down His life, torn in the flesh, blood poured out. So, I can enter in. So I can approach the Father myself.

The price?

Incarnation

Temptation

Suffering

Crucifixion

That leads to the

The Privilege of Admission

After showing us how much it cost to get us access to God we will look at just how great a privilege this access is.

Hebrews 10:19–20 “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,”

He does not say since you have confidence in yourself

He says,

“Since we have confidence…by the blood of Jesus.”

Our confidence is not found in the strength of our faith but in the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice.

Confidence. The idea of being a citizen and you know what your rights are.

The entrance into the most holy place was forbidden to all but the high priest; but now access to the real “holy of holies” was granted to all in the name of the great High Priest of the Christian profession.

The high priest entered only once each year, carrying sacrificial blood, and only according to God’s exact instructions. The result of failing to follow God’s instructions precisely, was death.

The Holy of Holies proclaimed one unmistakable truth:

One does not simply walk into the presence of a holy God.

What was the punishment for doing so? Death

The blood of Jesus is how this access to heaven is secured. The Jewish high priest entered the holy of holies with the blood of bulls and of rams ; but the Saviour offered his own blood, and that became how we may have access to God.

Not because God had become less holy, but because His justice had been fully satisfied in His Son.

The place that once meant certain death has now become the place where believers are welcomed.

A throne is the seat of a sovereign;

A throne is the seat of a king.

It speaks of authority.

Power.

Majesty.

Justice.

God has not ceased to be the sovereign King of the universe

Yet Hebrews adds one remarkable word. Only time this phrase appears in Scripture

Now it is a throne of grace is designed to represent a sovereign seated to dispense mercy and pardon

He did not merely tell you to pray.

He gave His Son so that you could.

Prayer is not an afterthought of the Christian life.

It is one of the great blessings Christ died to secure.

The Prize of Admission

At his throne, Christians can find grace to help them in their times of need.

You are welcomed into the throne room of the King. Not as an alien but a citizen

You come, not as a stranger, but as an adopted son or daughter.

Not because you deserve to be there.

Because Christ deserves to be there—and you are united to Him.

Notice the order in Hebrews 10.

We receive mercy first.

That is because our greatest need is forgiveness.

We do not first come asking God to improve our circumstances.

We first come praying Lord be merciful to me a sinner.

We still need the Father’s forgiveness.

And every time we come through Christ, mercy is found.

But we do not receive mercy alone.

We also find grace.

Grace to endure suffering.

Grace to resist temptation.

Grace to obey difficult commands.

Grace to forgive those who have wounded us.

Grace to persevere when faith is costly.

Grace for today’s burdens—not merely yesterday’s failures.

God never calls His children to a task without also supplying the grace necessary to accomplish it.

Conclusion

We have the privilege of coming before such a throne. We are sinful—and need mercy; we are feeble and need grace to help us. There is not a day of our lives in which we do not need pardon; not an hour in which we do not need grace.

With a true heart in full assurance. In other words, we can now stand before God certain that our sins are forgiven by virtue of our faith in Jesus.

This throne is always accessible. There IS A GOD. He is always ready to pardon. There IS A REDEEMER. He is the Great High Priest of men. He is always interceding

This is why prayer is indispensable to the Christian life.

Prayer is the God-ordained means by which His children lay hold of the mercy and grace He delights to give.

Don’t give up.

And He is praying for you

And He is inviting you into the Holy place, to pray

Run into the throne room, it is open to you.