Oozing from the Throne

“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” — Hebrews 4:16, NIV.

This familiar verse begins by encouraging us to approach the throne of grace (more on this later!) with confidence. The Greek word parrēsia, sometimes translated as “boldness,” describes a kind of freedom, openness, and frankness in speech. It was often used to describe someone who spoke candidly and confidently, even when doing so might invite criticism or opposition.

Isn't it incredible that this is the kind of confidence we are encouraged to have when approaching the Lord? We do not have to curate our words to sound as “spiritual” as possible, conceal our weaknesses, or worry that we are being “too honest” with him. We can come before him with every question, concern, disappointment, and need, knowing that he already understands our hearts. God invites us to “keep it real” with him! (And since he already knows what is in our hearts and minds anyway, I'm not sure who we think we are fooling when we try to hide something from him!)

Remember what we are told just before this invitation:

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15, NIV).

Jesus, the one who gives us access to the throne room, knows what it means to experience suffering, temptation, and the difficulties of human life. We are not approaching a distant God who cannot possibly understand what we are experiencing. We are approaching the One who knows us intimately, understands our weaknesses, and has made a way for us to come into his presence. And because of him, we are invited to come confidently—not because we have somehow become worthy of approaching God, but because Jesus has made it possible.

Now, here is the distinction I really want to focus on in this passage: receive mercy and find grace. I love the simplicity of those two words, receive and find; and I think there is something beautiful about the way they are used here (I love words, if you have not picked that up by now).

First, we are told that we approach God's throne, so that we may receive mercy. We do not purchase it, earn it, or work to make ourselves deserving of it. We simply receive what God, in his compassion, freely offers.

I love the imagery here because receiving mercy makes me think of receiving a gift from someone who loves us. Think about it—when someone gives us a gift, we don’t have to earn it, prove we deserve it, or convince them to give it to us (at least, that's not typically how gift-giving works!). They offer it freely, not because of anything we have done, but simply because they love us and desire to express that love. The gift is not a reward for our performance or compensation for something we have accomplished. It is an expression of the giver's affection, generosity, and desire to bless us. All we have to do is receive what they have already chosen to give.

I think that is such a beautiful picture of the mercy of God. He does not wait for us to become worthy of his mercy before extending it to us. In fact, the very nature of mercy is that it is given when we do not deserve it. He invites us to come before him confidently, knowing that we will be met with the mercy he so willingly gives. We do not have to beg for it, bargain for it, or somehow persuade him to be merciful toward us (as though we could convince God to become more merciful than he already is—ha!). We simply show up and receive. We come into his presence and receive the gift he delights in giving, because he loves us and desires for us to draw near to him.

But then, we are told that we will find grace. And this is where I think the imagery of this verse becomes even more beautiful.

Consider where we are being invited to go at the very beginning of the verse. We are approaching the throne of grace. The throne…of…GRACE.

Of course we will find grace there!

We know exactly where to go to look for grace because God has quite literally invited us to the very place from which it flows. We are not wandering around aimlessly, hoping to stumble upon some hidden waterfall of grace or wondering whether we have come to the right place. We have been given an invitation, directions, and access to its very source. And the source is God himself!

The Greek word heuriskō, translated as “find,” ordinarily means discovering or coming upon something. But consider the assurance we have in this passage: when we approach the throne of grace, we know where to find the grace we need. It is not something scarce that we must search endlessly to discover. Grace overflows from the very character of God, abundant and ever-present in his throne room. His grace is not something he reluctantly portions out to those who have managed to become deserving of it. It flows from who he is.

I cannot help but picture this throne room as a place absolutely overflowing with grace—not a little grace here and there, carefully measured and distributed (sprinkled, if you will), but an abundance of grace that surrounds the very presence of God. I just see it oozing from the throne (sorry if that grosses you out mentally; it is just what I see!).

How could we possibly approach the throne of grace and not find grace? It is the very nature of the place to which we have been invited! We do not have to wonder whether there will be enough for us or whether we have somehow exhausted our share. We can come confidently, knowing that grace will always be there because the God from whom it flows never changes.

And I love that the verse does not simply say that we will find grace, but that we will find “grace to help us in our time of need.” God is not merely inviting us to admire his grace from a distance. He is offering us the very grace we need for whatever circumstances we are facing. Biblically, grace is God’s unmerited favor and empowering presence, freely given to humanity—forgiveness and divine enablement; the supernatural power to become who God created you to be. Both a pardon and a power. The grace to endure, the grace to persevere, the grace to forgive, the grace to begin again, and the grace to trust him when we cannot see what lies ahead. Whatever our need, we are invited to bring it into his presence, knowing that he is able to help us.

Ephesians 2:8 reminds us that it is by grace we have been saved through faith, and that this is the gift of God. Similarly, Romans 5:2 tells us that through Christ, we have gained access by faith into the grace in which we now stand. I love that imagery, too. We are not merely “visiting” God's grace from time to time, hoping there will be enough left for us when we return. Through Christ, we have been given a place to stand in it. We can dwell in his presence, rest in his goodness, and freely enjoy the abundance of grace that surrounds us. There is no need to ration it, save it for a really difficult day, or worry that we might be asking for too much. We have access to the God whose grace is sufficient for us (2 Corinthians 12:9).

I wonder how often we approach God as though we are asking him for something he is hesitant to give. Like, “God, please give me the grace for this situation, but only if you want to, and if you have enough, and if it's not too much trouble!”

We come apologetically, carrying the weight of our failures and shortcomings, sometimes forgetting that he has already invited us into his presence. We act as though we need to persuade him to extend his mercy or convince him that our circumstances warrant a little extra grace, when Scripture tells us to simply come confidently and receive it!

And maybe what I love most about this passage (hard to choose) is that neither receiving mercy nor finding grace requires us to arrive with anything figured out. In fact, the entire invitation is extended to us precisely because we are in need—we just have to show up in the throne room. God already knows our weaknesses, our shortcomings, our struggles, and the circumstances that have brought us to his throne. We are not expected to overcome those things before coming to him. We are invited to bring them with us. We can show up with a suitcase full of need or simply with open hands—and we can lay it all down or simply bow at his feet.

So when we put these two beautiful promises together, we begin to see just how incredible this invitation truly is. We approach the throne to receive the mercy God freely gives, and we find the grace that is already there.

Mercy is a gift that flows from his love and compassion, while grace abounds in his presence because it is an expression of his very character. Neither is something we can earn, and neither is something we have to convince him to offer.

Because we have been saved and are deeply loved by this God of grace, we can accept his invitation with confidence. His throne is not a place we need to fear approaching, but a place where we are welcomed through Christ, where mercy is freely given, and where grace is always available to help us in our time of need. We do not have to exhaust ourselves striving for something that Jesus has already made available to us. We simply come to him, receive his mercy, and rest in the abundance of his grace.

God does not invite us to the throne room because we have everything we need—he invites us because he does.

bytaylormcgee