Throne of Grace

Most people know what it is like to feel timid around another person. The girl you had a crush on in elementary school made you stutter and forget your name. Being around “Mr. Popular” made you slightly unsure of yourself. Now the presence of your boss makes you speak a little quieter, and perhaps with more thought before each sentence.

For most of us there will always be that person who intimidates us. But God does not intend to be one of those people. He does not picture our relationship as being one based on fear and intimidation. In Hebrews 4:16 we are told that we can “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

We can boldly approach God’s throne with confidence in the fact that He wants to hear from us. I don’t think we need to go overboard with this and make Jesus our “homeboy,” as some have done; we need to maintain a healthy respect for who He is and what He has done for us.

But God wants to have a relationship with us. Just as a child has no problem telling his parents what he wants for Christmas, so we should have no problem making our requests known unto God. That is not to say that God is a divine Santa or Genie, existing only to grant our wishes; but in the context of this verse, God is there when we need to ask for grace and mercy.

And we can ask for them boldly.