Where the Action Is

These are some of my favorite verses: “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. 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” (Hebrews 4:15-16, ESV).

The throne of grace is the place of prayer. Aren’t you glad that God’s throne — for those of us who believe — is a throne of grace? It is not a throne of judgment or beatings. No. Grace is God’s unmerited favor and love in action. The place of prayer is the place of receiving these blessings that he has promised us. That’s where he calls us.

Remember how the book of James says, “You do not have, because you do not ask” (James 4:2)? Imagine having written on your tombstone, “They lived without what God would’ve given them because they didn’t take the time to just ask him.” There are some things that God would freely give us, but we won’t ask him. Instead, we got all depressed. We called Auntie Marie and all our friends and complained.

What exactly did we miss out on? What does God give us at the throne of grace? First, he gives us mercy. Why do we need that? The simple answer is because we mess up. I do things I shouldn’t do; I say things I shouldn’t say, and I don’t do those things I should be doing. For these things, I ask for God’s mercy, and that’s when he doesn’t give me what I deserve. We all need mercy every single day, then we won’t live in fear and condemnation. Second, he gives us grace to help us just in the nick of time. God wants to give us things we don’t deserve.

Most of us are tit-for-tat people. “You do good to me, so I’ll do good for you. You hurt me, and I’ll hurt you.” This is why we struggle to understand God’s mercy and grace, and he’s a good God, full of both. Ask God to forgive your sins, and ask him to give you want you need today.

Most of all, let’s ask God to help us have more quality time at the throne of mercy and grace!

_{Jim Cymbala began the Brooklyn Tabernacle with less than twenty members in a small, rundown building in a difficult part of the city. A native of Brooklyn, he is a longtime friend of both David and Gary Wilkerson.}