Approach, Receive, Find, and Help!

Hebrews 4:16

“Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time” (Hebrews 4:16 HCSB).

In his book, 100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart, Robert J. Morgan reminds us of the definitions of mercy and grace:

“Mercy is God’s attitude of forgiveness in not giving us what we do deserve. Grace is his attitude of blessing and benevolence in giving us what we do not deserve” (78).

Isn’t it interesting to note that Hebrews 4:16 states we may receive mercy (or forgiveness), but we find grace (blessing and benevolence). In other words, we hold out our hands and our hearts toward God for His mercy, but we actively seek and search for His grace.

For example,

When I observe a beautiful butterfly serenely sipping nourishing nectar from a flowering lantana, it reminds me of how God provides both mercy and grace in response to our boldness in seeking it. The butterfly flutters instinctively to the source of its supply, and it receives that supply by positioning, probing, piercing, and extracting the nectar with its proboscis.

The “Amazing Way Butterflies Get Their Nectar” is explained simply, but eloquently, here in this 2-minute video.

According to entomologist Ray Cannon (see Ray Cannon’s Nature Notes),

Butterflies can learn, and learning plays an important role in shaping what flowers they come to prefer and use in order to obtain nectar, even though some preferences are hard-wired (i.e. innate). They learn which flowers provide the best rewards, and use a variety of different cues (or signals) to find a flower, land on it and position themselves in order to extract its nectar.

So, What Can We Learn?

First, let’s probe and extract the nectar from the verbs in Hebrews 4:12:

“Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time”

• Approach — to draw near

• Receive — to take in or acquire

• Find — to discover by searching

• Help — to support, undergird, and provide aid

Bible Scholar Whitney Myers shares fascinating insight about the Greek word [boétheia] translated as “help,” a nautical term used only twice in the New Testament (Hebrews 4:16 and Acts 27:17):

Recall that in Acts 27:14-17 the Apostle Paul was traveling to Rome on a ship that was caught in a severe storm. The sailors were losing control of the ship and feared running aground. In Acts 27:17 (KJV) the sailors wrapped supporting ropes or cables called "helps" [boétheia] around the wooden hull of their ship from stem to stern to hold the planks of the ship tightly together during the storm (Ref. 8).

In the same way the ancient mariners used "helps" to wrap around, undergird, and support their vessels in storms, God provides his help to support us and hold us together when we are going through the storms of life.

Challenge: This week, let’s approach the throne of grace more boldly, receive God’s mercy more gratefully, and seek His help more determinedly.

Father,

Please teach us from the butterfly, the Bible, and boats to boldly approach your throne of grace.

May we learn to bask in the sweet relief of your mercy and draw sustenance and delight from the treasures of your grace.

Thank You for providing “All, but Only” the help we need in every situation we face and always “at the proper time.”

Thank You for loving us as Your children.

In the name of Your Son who makes mercy and grace possible, Amen.

The Wobbly Warbler is grateful to Melissa Smith for composing a lovely melody for Hebrews 4:16. I just discovered the website scripturemelodies.com, which offers free resources like sound files, coloring pages, and sheet music, to help memorize scripture. Many thanks!