The Greatest Changer Series

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his close friend and partner Ralph Abernathy

changed the course of history in America because of their leadership of the civil rights

movement. The end result was that blacks could enter eating establishments, schools,

buses, and a host of other places where they could not enter before. Ralph Abernathy

said, “ Bring on your tear gas, bring on your grenades, your new supplies of mace, your

state troopers and even your national guards. But let the record show we ain’t going to be

turned around.” The record does stand, and they did not turn back, but marched on to

change the system. It was one of the greatest changes in history, but Abernathy does not

give the credit to men, for he goes on to say, “Christians should be ready for a change

because Jesus was the greatest changer in history.”

That is a reality that we see stressed in the book of Hebrews. The civil rights movement

opened the door for people to enter places they could never enter before, and that was a

great change, but there is nothing in history to match what Jesus did in opening up a

place to enter that could not be entered before. Our text reveals the most amazing change

ever, for it says that those in Christ are now free to enter the Most Holy Place. This was

the place most forbidden. This was the place that nobody could enter but the High Priest,

and even he could only do so once a year, and even then only when he did all manner of

things to prepare. The death of Jesus made it possible for this forbidden place, which was

the very dwelling place of God, to become accessible to all believers. The masses can now

enter this place which was always off limits. Every Tom, Dick and Harry, and every Sue,

Doris, and Mary from every race and color and nation can now enter into the very

presence of God. This is the most radical and revolutionary change in the history of the

relationship of God and man. Jesus made this change possible by shedding His blood for

mankind, and this qualifies Him as the greatest changer in history.

There is an interesting web site called World Changers, which is devoted to educating

Christians on how to become influences in the world that changes the world. Here is one

of their statements: “Every faculty member at IWU is a committed Christian who has

pledged to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, the greatest World Changer of all time!

You may have heard it before: Jesus never owed a home, never wrote a book, never

commanded an army or led a nation, . . . He never even traveled more than about 50

miles from his home town, yet He has had more influence on the history of mankind than

all other people combined. He accomplished this by showing just twelve other people how

to become World Changers, and they in turn showed others. And they did it by their

example as much as by their teachings. They didn’t just talk the talk; they walked the

walk.”

One of the key ways that we walk the walk according to our text is by walking right into

the Holy of Holies and communicating with God face to face. No longer do we need to

depend on a representative to go to God for us. We can come into Him directly, and so we

want to focus on the three things I see stressed in this 19th verse, which reads,

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood

of Jesus,..”

I. THE ATTITUDE-CONFIDENCE

We need not come with fear and trembling, which characterized the attitude of the Old

Testament saints when they confronted the presence of God. When God spoke to them we

are told that even Moses was terrified and trembled with fear. (Heb. 12:21). Imagine the

Jewish people standing before the tabernacle and Monte Hall saying "Will you trade your

freedom to enter curtain number one to enter curtain number two or three?" They would

consider him a mad man and have him committed immediately, for the people could not

make that choice. They were forbidden to even enter the holy place, let alone the Most

Holy Place, called the Holy of Holies. To enter that place was equal to stepping into the

inferno that was prepared for the three friends of Daniel. They survived by God's grace,

and so did the High Priest, who came in once a year to make atonement for the sins of the

people. But anyone else seeking to enter was signing his own death warrant.

This is absolutely amazing, for this is the greatest scandal imaginable to the Jews who