Total Access

Last week I was preaching at Trinity Cheltenham in their sermon series on Mark’s gospel. My passage was Mark 15:33-41, and the focus was on the torn curtain (v38), and the centurion’s declaration (v39).

The temple had so many barriers to entry: the Court of the Gentiles was as far as most of us could go; ritually purified Jewish woman could go a little further, but had to stop in the Court of Women; Jewish men could go into the Court of Israel; priests entered the Court of Priests; when they ministered, they went further, into the Holy Place; and finally, just once a year, the High Priest had the honour of entering the Holy of Holies, which was so holy they attached a cord around his ankle so that if he had a heart attack, he could be dragged out without someone going in there.

So when that curtain separating the Holy of Holies was torn from top to bottom, wow… 

And then imagine the centurion, who oversaw the whole process, from leading Jesus from the Praetorium to listening to Jesus’ pronouncements on the cross to certifying him dead. His conclusion: “Surely this man was the Son of God!”

I loved digging deeper into this very familiar passage. It was a powerful time at Trinity. May it be an encouragement to you. We don’t need to live behind barriers of religion, or indeed create our own barriers of shame. We can approach the throne of grace with freedom and confidence. Total access. It’s a glorious truth.