Daily Bible Verse - 1/16/2008 - Hebrews 10:22

let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Hebrews 10:22

Commentary

10:22 Let us draw near. This is the believer's blood-bought privilege. How wonderful beyond all words that we are invited to have audience, not with this world's celebrities, but with the Sovereign of the universe! The extent to which we value the invitation is shown by the manner in which we respond to it.

There is a fourfold description of how we should be spiritually groomed in entering the throne room.

1. With a true heart. The people of Israel drew near to God with their mouth, and honored Him with their lips, but their heart was often far from Him (Matt. 15:8). Our approach should be with utter sincerity.

2. In full assurance of faith. We draw near with utter confidence in the promises of God and with the firm conviction that we shall have a gracious reception into His presence.

3. Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience. This can be brought about only by the new birth. When we trust Christ, we appropriate the value of His blood. Figuratively speaking, we sprinkle our hearts with it, just as the Israelites sprinkled their doors with the blood of the Passover lamb.

4. And our bodies washed with pure water. Again this is symbolic language. Our bodies represent our lives. The pure water might refer either to the word (Eph 5:25, 26), to the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39), or to the Holy Spirit using the word in cleansing our lives from daily defilement. We are cleansed once for all from the guilt of sin by the death of Christ, but cleansed repeatedly from the defilement of sin by the Spirit through the word (see John 13:10).

Thus we might summarize the four requisites for entering God's presence as sincerity, assurance, salvation, and sanctification.

MacDonald, W., & Farstad, A. (1997, c1995). Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments (Heb 10:22). Nashville: Thomas Nelson

Daily Bible Verse - 1/15/2008 - Ezekiel 36:26-27

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

"Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances."

Ezekiel 36:26-27

Commentary
This is the clearest statement of the N.T. concept of conversion to be found anywhere in the O.T. In the N.T. a new heart is the result of conversion (Matt. 5:8; 22:37; Rom. 10:10; 2 Cor. 4:6; Eph. 6:6; 1 Pet. 3:15). Receiving the "spirit" is also fulfilled in Jesus' promise of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-18, 23; 16:7-15) and the ultimate fulfillment at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). One day all of this shall also be true for repentant Israel.

Believer's Study Bible. 1997, c1995. C1991 Criswell Center for Biblical Studies. (electronic ed.) (Eze 36:25). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Did you know?
The prospect of God placing His own Spirit within His people to help them walk in His ways (Ezek. 36:26-27) was an exciting new development. The Holy Spirit inspired Old Testament believers to pursue holiness, and from time to time He came upon certain leaders in a way that gave them extraordinary power. But He was not a permanent resident in God's people as He is today. So Ezekiel's vision of an indwelling Spirit must have filled his listeners with anticipation.

Word in life study Bible . 1997, c1996 (electronic ed.) (Eze 38:2). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.