I have an office at the church, at the end of a corridor - that doesn't really go anywhere. So most footsteps that make their way along the corridor are almost certainly coming to see me. And sometimes these footsteps make interesting listening. They get less and less confident as they approach the end of the corridor, almost as if there is some internal battle going on in the walker. When they reach the door there is invariably a pause - as if the visitor is first of all trying to establish whether I am in or not; if they think I'm in am I in the middle of an important meeting or phone call; maybe I'm too busy and they should come back later; maybe their 'issue' is not so important after all... The majority will then knock, and wait to be invited in.
But there are three people in the church who refuse to follow this protocol. They simply run down the corridor at full speed and burst into the office without so much as a knock or 'excuse me' (the latch on the door doesn't work so the door can simply be pushed open). They are, of course, my three young daughters. They're not coming to see the pastor, they're coming to see their daddy. And whatever it is they want to show me or tell me, or even if they just want a cuddle, they will interrupt whatever I'm doing.
In our weekly series in Hebrews we have reached chapter 8, which talks (amongst other things) about how the 'new covenant' is about having a relationship with God. It is about knowing God - not just knowing about God. God invites us to be his children, to be in a relationship with him. He offers forgiveness for sins (verse 12). And part of this all means that we can come into God's presence with confidence (4:16).
How do we feel about coming into God's presence? Do we stand at the door and knock cautiously, full of doubt as to whether we should even be there? Or do we run down the corridor and burst in without knocking because we want to see our heavenly daddy, who loves us?
