Jesus Forever: The Ascended, Reigning Christ
30 min read
The letter to the Hebrews reveals a dimension of Jesus' present ministry that almost no popular Christian teaching addresses: his ongoing work as High Priest.
"He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them." — Hebrews 7:25
1. Jesus did not stop working at the resurrection.
The resurrection vindicated Jesus. The Ascension enthroned him. But Hebrews reveals that in the heavenly sanctuary, Jesus continues to exercise an active, ongoing ministry on behalf of his people. He is not waiting passively. He is functioning as the great High Priest — interceding, mediating, and sympathizing with his people before the Father.
2. The High Priest in the Old Testament was the mediator between God and people.
Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies — the place of God's manifest presence — carrying the blood of the sacrifice (Lev. 16). This was the most solemn moment in Israel's religious calendar. The high priest entered on behalf of the people — representing them before God, presenting the blood that atoned for their sins. Hebrews 9:11-12 says Jesus has entered the true sanctuary — the heavenly reality — "once for all, having obtained eternal redemption."
3. Jesus' intercession is ongoing.
Romans 8:34 — "Christ Jesus is the one who died — more than that, who was raised — who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us." Hebrews 7:25 — "He always lives to make intercession for them." This is present tense, continuous action. At this moment, the risen, ascended Jesus is bringing your name before the Father. Not as a reminder to God — God does not forget — but as the mediator through whom your access to God is maintained and guaranteed.
4. The High Priest can sympathize — not because he is remote but because he was present.
Hebrews 4:15 — "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." Jesus' sympathy is not generic compassion from a distance. It is the sympathy of someone who has been hungry, tired, tempted, abandoned, and crushed by grief. His intercession is informed by actual human experience.
5. This means you can approach God with confidence.
Hebrews 4:16 — "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." The word "confidence" is parresia — boldness, openness, the access of a child to a parent. This confidence is not based on your worthiness. It is based on your High Priest, who has opened the way and stands before the throne on your behalf.
Read Hebrews 9:11-28. Write a paragraph: what has Jesus accomplished as High Priest that makes ordinary human priesthood obsolete?
Submit your paragraph and your journal answer about how you think of Jesus when you pray.
A: He intercedes for believers, mediates their access to God, and presents his own blood as the atonement that obtained eternal redemption.
A: Because he was tempted in every way as we are — his intercession is informed by actual human experience.
A: The boldness to approach the throne of grace directly — not based on personal worthiness, but on the High Priest who stands there on our behalf.
Lord Jesus, right now, at this moment, you are interceding for me. That is not a metaphor. Let me live from that reality — approaching God with the confidence of someone who has an advocate. Amen.