If you sent a letter to God ∙

If you sent a letter to God ∙

For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. – Ephesians 2:18

Romans 5:1-2

 1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

Every year, Israel sorts and blesses thousands of prayers and pleas, letters to God: mailed to Jerusalem from throughout the world.

Hundreds of letters are carefully set aside for special delivery in a postal sorting office and treated with the respect accorded to sacred documents. The envelopes are variously addressed, but all are destined for the same place. And all are unanswerable by man. Only the Father God, the addressee, can respond.

The Israeli postal service has a special Letters to God department. Each year thousands of letters are received and once every few months opened, folded, and, in a ceremony overseen by a senior rabbi, squeezed into the cracks of the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City.

One letter from Poland was simply addressed: “God, Jerusalem, Israel;” another from Australia: “Dearest God, Western Wall.” They arrive in many languages. Most were written in Russian in the second decade of the 20th century, but others are from Germany, Mexico, and France.

Inside, they hold messages of heartfelt sorrow, grief, or religious devotion. Visits or pilgrimages have inspired some to Jerusalem, others by television preachers. Some seem driven by fervent religious belief.

Since 1997, Avi Yaniv has been in charge of the Letters to God department and has tried to make sense of the mail that arrives each day. Yaniv said, “They come from depression, or stress or grief.” “They ask for healing of a family member, or to make peace between a man and his wife, or between Israel and Arab countries.

Regardless of the writer’s faith, each letter is eventually delivered to the Western Wall, and, after some time, the cracks in the wall are emptied to make way for new messages, and the old ones are buried in sacred ground. “We believe the Western Wall is the closest place to God in Jerusalem,” said Yaniv (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/dec/20/israel-jerusalem-letters-to-god).

If you wanted to send a letter to God, where would you send it? Is there access to God anywhere on planet Earth? Would He be receptive?

As a result of the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ, every child of the King has direct access to their Father. Writing letters is nice, but in this day and age a bit passé. The Father has a much longer and richer tradition of providing access to Him: prayer.

REFLECT & PRAY

Children of the King have been granted the eternal privilege of direct access to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Father thank You that You have adopted us into Your Forever Family. Therefore, we have the privilege of direct access to You whenever we need it. What an unbelievable honor and prerogative! You did this for us when we became children of the King.

INSIGHT

In most modern nations, approaching a person of stature and status is often difficult, if not impossible. But it is just the opposite with the Father, the living God.

Paul was quite clear when he wrote, “through him we have also obtained access by faith” (Romans 5:2).

The Greek word Paul uses for access or introduction is prosagogo. Prosagogo provides two great word pictures. It is used for the ship’s return coming into the harbor after a long and arduous journey. Because of the work of Christ, the haven of the Father’s grace is readily available to each of the Father’s children. We have striven, and finally, we have reached a bastion of serenity and calm. It depends not on what we do for ourselves but on what the Father has done for us (Barclay).

Prosagogo is also used to describe when someone was introduced or ushered into the presence of royalty. In many cases, it is used of being able to approach God. “Paul was saying: Jesus ushers us into the very presence of God. He opens the door for us to the presence of the King of Kings, and when that door is opened, what we find is grace; not condemnation, not judgment, not vengeance, but the sheer, undeserved, incredible kindness of God” (Barclay). Ephesians 2:18 and Ephesians 3:12 refer to access to The Father Himself. We are permitted direct access into His very presence because of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us.

In his fictional novel, The Prince and the Pauper, Mark Twain refers to the Privilege of the Kents.

Miles Hendon helps restore Prince Edward (King Edward VI) to his rightful place on the throne. As a result, he is granted a special privilege by King Edward. He and his relatives will always have the right to sit in the presence of the king when everyone else must stand.

[Referring to Miles Hendon] A sudden idea flashed in his eye, and he strode to the wall, gathered up a chair, brought it back, planted it on the floor, and sat down in it!

A buzz of indignation broke out, a rough hand was laid upon him, and a voice exclaimed, “Up, you mannerless clown! Would you sit in the presence of the King?”

The disturbance attracted his Majesty’s attention, who stretched forth his hand and cried out: “Touch him not; it is his right!”

The crowd fell back, stupefied. The King went on,

“Learn all, ladies, lords, and gentlemen, that this is my trusty and well-beloved servant, Miles Hendon, who interposed his good sword and saved his prince from bodily harm and possible death – and for this, he is a knight, by the King’s voice. Also learn, that for a higher service, in that he saved his sovereign stripes and shame, taking these upon himself, he is a peer of England, Earl of Kent, and shall have gold and lands meet for the dignity. More – the privilege which he has just exercised is his by royal grant; for we have ordained that the chiefs of his line shall have and hold the right to sit in the presence of the Majesty of England henceforth, age after age, so long as the crown shall endure. Molest him not” (The Prince and the Pauper, Chapter 33).

Each child of the King has been granted the eternal privilege of direct access to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Hebrews 4:16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace

Hebrews 4:16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

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© Dr. H 2022