In the reading from the Passion History a few minutes ago, we heard of our Lord being taken into the palace of the high priest and how he was questioned there by those who were thirsty for His blood. They would get their wish. Within a matter of hours the Son of God would be convicted, sentenced, and executed. His blood would be shed. Like Abel of old, the Son of God would die as an innocent victim. But His blood speaks better things than Abel's. Or, as one of our hymns puts it, Abel's blood for vengeance pleaded to the skies, but the blood of Jesus for our pardon cries. Abel's blood speaks. It cries out from earth to heaven, pleading for retribution. Jesus' blood also speaks. His precious blood cries out from heaven, proclaiming not retribution and revenge but pardon and forgiveness of sins. It is through that blood that we are given access to God.
Our text from the Book of Hebrews notes seven aspects of this access which we have been given. First, we are told that we have access to the place of heavenly worship. ...You have come to Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. Mt. Zion was the location of the temple in the Old Testament. The temple was where God had located His name and His presence. Unlike Mt. Sinai, the mountain of the law, which was unapproachable, Mt. Zion was accessible to the Lord's people. For here God had established His temple. And of that temple, He said to Solomon: I have consecrated the house which you have built to put My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually (I Kings 9:3). The temple is the place of God's presence. That is why our Lord makes reference to His own flesh and blood body as God's temple. In John 2, when Jesus speaks of how the temple will be destroyed and in three days restored, He is not talking about the temple of brick and mortar but the temple of His own flesh and blood. As we heard last Wednesday, it is through that flesh and blood that we are brought into the holy place of God's presence.
In the Divine Service heaven intersects with earth and we, as citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, stand in God's presence as Hing, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth, heaven and earth are full of Thy glory.... We did not make this song up! It is song of the angels heard by Isaiah in the temple and it is given to us. The heavenly choir of angels teaches the earthly choir of the church.
The third aspect of the access which we have to God is that we are one with all believers in Jesus Christ. All baptized believers are members of this heavenly assembly. Our text says that we have been brought to the general assembly of the firstborn who are registered in heaven. In other words, we have been brought into membership in the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church. Now this church is hidden to the human eye, but not to the Lord. The Lord knows those who belong to Him. We are not Christians by ourselves. We are members of the body of Jesus Christ. Joined to our Lord by faith we are members one of one another. We are brothers and sisters of all who have God as their Father through faith in Jesus Christ. Paul puts it like this in Ephesians 4: There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in all (4:5-6). God does not leave us in loneliness, but makes us members of His family in Holy Baptism. And so the holy writer to the Hebrews also warns us not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together as is the manner of some (10:25).
Fourthly, we have access to God the judge of all. On the Last Day all people will stand before the Judge of all. No secrets will be hidden from Him. He will pronounce judgment on all. It will be a verdict of condemnation or acquittal. When we hear the Absolution, the word of forgiveness, we are hearing God's verdict on us ahead of time. In that verdict we hear that God forgives our sins for the sake of His Son.
The fifth thing that Hebrews tells us is that we have the faithful departed as our mentors. We are in the company of the spirits of just men made perfect. In the previous chapter of Hebrews there is a list of those who have gone before us in the faith from the Old Testament beginning with Abel. We do not pray to the saints nor do we trust in them for salvation. But the Augsburg Confession does remind us that we are to give thanks to God for the way in which His grace was manifested in their lives and we are to imitate the example of their faithful living. They are our teachers in the faith and role models for the life of good works.
Sixthly, we have access to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant. Paul writes to Timothy, For there is one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus (I Timothy 2:8). A mediator is a go between. Jesus is the One who brings us into the presence of His Father. He has taken our sin upon Himself and in place of our sin He gives us His perfect righteousness which enables to stand pure and faultless before God.
Finally, our text notes the seventh element of our access to God: the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than Abel.. Throughout this Lenten Season we have heard the words of the Old Testament: without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. The blood of Jesus Christ was shed on the cross for us. Notice that our text speaks of the blood of sprinkling in the present tense. That is, the blood of Jesus Christ once shed on the cross is now given and applied to us in His Holy Supper. Here we receive the fruits of His atoning sacrifice. His blood still speaks. It speaks better things than the blood of Abel. The blood of Jesus Christ speaks the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. The Sacrament preaches these better things for us. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes (I Cor. 11:25). Amen.
The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus to life everlasting. Amen.