Come to Christ

 

Hebrews 12:22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. (NIV)

 

In this passage, the writer of the book of Hebrews continues his warning, which began in verse fifteen, to not miss out on salvation. This warning was to the first century Hebrew Christians, but applies also to all people today. The writer was attempting to discourage the Hebrew Christians from returning to Judaism. In the previous passage, the Old Covenant Law of Moses was portrayed as a covenant of fear and judgment. In contrast, in this passage, the New Covenant of Jesus Christ is portrayed as a covenant of blessings. 

In portraying the New Covenant the writer lists eight blessings. When we “come to” (v.22) Christ, we “come to” these eight blessings. The blessings are discussed below. 

(1) We come “to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God” (v. 22a). The writer contrasts Mount Zion with Mount Sinai, where Moses came to receive the Old Covenant from God. Mount Zion, unlike Mount Sinai, represents “the city of the living God”, not just a mountain used temporarily by God. It is a blessing to come to the home of the living God. 

(2) We come to “the Heavenly Jerusalem” (v. 22b). It is a blessing to come to Heaven, and to bask in its beauty. 

(3) We “come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly” (v. 22c). It is a blessing to be serenaded by angels in Heaven. 

(4) We come “to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven” (v. 23a). These are the New Testament saints, those believers of the church age. It is a blessing to come to them and to fellowship with them for eternity. 

(5) We “come to God, the Judge of all” (v. 23b). It is a great blessing to come to God the Father, to be warmed by His glory, and to be able to worship Him in person. 

(6) We come to “the spirits of the righteous made perfect” (v. 23c). These are the Old Testament saints. It is a blessing to come meet them, know them, and learn from them. 

(7) We come “to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant” (v. 24a). It is a great blessing to come to see Jesus, face to face, to worship Him, to thank Him personally, and to sit at his feet and learn. Just as Moses was the mediator of the Old Covenant, Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant. 

(8) We come “to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” (v. 24b). The blood of Christ represents grace and forever forgiveness of sin. The blood of Abel, shed by his brother Cain, represented vengeance and temporary covering of sin. It is a blessing to come to Christ as one who is forgiven through grace, forever. 

To come to Christ means to experience these blessings, and much, much, more. It is a blessing that far outweighs anything else. It is worth giving up anything else. It is our best hope, our only hope. Come to Christ. You will never regret doing so.  

Art Toombs Ministries 

Online Bible Commentary