It is good to have an Anchor who is our Forerunner!

Hebrews 6 is an amazing chapter. It can bring us low but then lift us to spiritual heights. It is a chapter for those serious about their faith in Jesus Christ. It is for those who want to be faithful, to be accountable, to have hope despite the circumstances, to know what was started by faith will be completed by grace.

For a few moments, I encourage you to join me on that spiritual ride from one section of Hebrews 6, verses19 and 20, We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. The possibility of apostasy is replaced with the certainty of victory. Dependence on human effort is displaced by a settled hope in the one who is the anchor of our souls and forerunner of our future inheritance. These verses picture Jesus as our hope based on His function and order.

First, Jesus is described as our anchor. William L. Lane, As a ship is held fast when at anchor, the life of the Christian is secured by hope that binds that life to Christ, who has entered the heavenly sanctuary . . . His presence behind the curtain is the firm pledge that we also shall pass through the curtain and enter within the inner sanctuary . . . The curtain separated the outer sanctuary from the inner sanctuary (the Holy of Holies). Only the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies and then only once per year on the Day of Atonement. When Jesus, died on the cross, that curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. Warren Wiersbe rightly proclaims, Anchored heavenward! How much more secure can you be? Because of Jesus’ function as anchor of our souls, we each have direct access to God at all times. What a hope and reality!

Second, Jesus is described as our forerunner. Consider the words of Marvin Vincent, The Levitical high priest did not enter the sanctuary as a forerunner, but only as the people’s representative. He entered a place into which none might follow him, in the people’s stead, and not as their pioneer. The peculiarity of the new economy is that Christ as High Priest goes nowhere that His people cannot follow Him. He introduces man into full fellowship with God. Jesus not only anchors our hope to the throne of God but guides us to His very presence. Be encouraged by Hebrews 4:14, Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.

Our hope is based not only on Jesus’ function but on His order, as well. One might understand order as class or type. The order was qualitative in that the uniqueness of Melchizedek was comparable to that of Jesus which is eternal and not in the line of Aaronic priests. R. Kent Hughes, We are anchored in the Father’s presence for eternity—and Jesus at his right hand perpetually intercedes for his Church. His continual priestly prayer for us is the medium for our survival. The fear of apostasy is replaced by the hope of living forever in the presence of God. Charles Spurgeon, Has He gone as a forerunner of those who may after all perish on the road? God forbid. Where our Head is, there must the members be before long.

It is comforting to know that our hope is not based on our ability to keep ourselves but in Jesus’ ability keep us. I encourage you to join the study of Hebrews 6:13-20 under the Books of the Bible tab. Let’s rejoice with R. Kent Hughes, . . . we have reason to be optimistic—we have an anchor for the soul.